
INTERPRETATION 



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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



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THE AUTHOR. 



DAGER'S 



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interpretation oi the Bible. 



GEORGE D. DAGER, 



AUTHOR AND PUBLISHER. 



UTICA, N. Y.: 

PRESS OF T. J. GRIFFITHS, EXCHANGE BUILDINGS: 
1895. 




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Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1895, by 

GEORGE D. DAGER, 

in the office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 
Is There a Creator Called God, 9 

CHAPTER II. 
What is Man? 25 

CHAPTER III. 
What is Man? 45 

CHAPTER IV. 
Christ's Mission on Earth, 63 

CHAPTER V. 
Christ's Mission on Earth, 92 

CHAPTER VI. 

The Church of God. . . .- 117 

CHAPTER VII, 

The New Birth, 150 

CHAPTER VIII. 
Heaven and Hell, 168 

CHAPTER IX. 

Heaven and Hell, 186 

CHAPTER X. 
Probation,. 202 

CHAPTER XI. 
The Unpardonable Sin 213 



Vll. 



Contents. 



CHAPTER XII. 

Devil, Dragon, Serpent, Satan, 227 

CHAPTER XIII. 
The Resurrection,. 245 

CHAPTER XIV. 

Man Proposes, God Disposes, 256 

CHAPTER XV. 

Responsibility of God and Man, 271. 

CHAPTER XVI. 
The Purpose of God, 300 

CHAPTER XVII. 
The Purpose of God, 321 

CHAPTER XVIII. 

Judas Iscariot, 345 

CHAPTER XIX. 

Equity, 370 

CHAPTER XX. 
Is the Christian Religion a Failure, 400 



CPref 



ace. 



T N writing this book, I have endeavored 
* to the best of my ability to give the 
contents to the world for consideration, 
with an impartial view. I have no dogma 
to confoim to, but truth. This is what I 
have searched for in Scripture, to qualify 
me to give true interpretations and appli- 
cations of the contents of the different sub- 
jects contained in this book. In writing 
this book I have set aside my own personal 
views, so as to be able to be free from any 
thing that is biased and partial in its char- 
acter. I intend this work shall be clean, 
free from any dogma; each subject will be 
sustained by Scripture; the allegories and 
anything metaphorical in character will 
have an impartial interpretation as to the 



iv Preface. 

meaning of the same. Pertaining to this 
work, I have investigated a chain of evi- 
dence from Genesis to Revelation — Adam 
the first link in this chain of evidence. I 
have followed the law, the prophets and 

the gospel. 

Geo. D. Dagek. 

Utica, N. Y. 



DAGER'S INTERPRETATION OF THE BIBLE. 



CHAPTER I. 

IS THERE A CREATOR CALLED GOD? 



IS there any positive, absolute and cer- 
tain proof that there is an intelligent 
Creator that created the universe ? 

In the consideration of this question 
there are two standpoints for man to rea- 
son from. If it be true that man must see 
God, as he sees man, to prove there is a 
God, then it cannot be proved there is a 
God ; hence we must reason from the other 
standpoint. 

A reasonable and candid search into the 
unknown, by the light of what is known, 
will guide the unbiased, intelligent rea- 
soner in the direction of the truth ; yet it 
is evident that without a direct revelation 
of the plans and purposes of God, men 
could only approximate the truth, and ar- 



10 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

rive at indefinite conclusions. But let us 
for the moment lay aside the Bible, and 
look at things from the standpoint of rea- 
son alone. He who can look into the sky 
with a telescope, or even with his natural 
eye alone, and see there the immensity of 
creation, its symmetry, beauty, order, har- 
mony and diversity, and yet doubt that 
the Creator of these is vastly his superior, 
both in wisdom and power ; or who can 
suppose for a moment that such order came 
by chance, without a Creator, has so far 
lost or ignored the faculty of reason, every 
reasonable mind must conclude; for it is a 
self-evident truth, that effects must have 
been produced by competent causes. When 
we study the heavens above, and the earth 
beneath, and examine the things that are 
created by an unseen power, made in 
beauty, form and system, that defy the 
greatest artist that ever walked the earth, 
with all his skill to accomplish, will rea- 
son in this condition deny the existence of 
an intelligent Creator, and claim that na- 
ture is the only Grod, and that from nature 
all things exist as they are, without an in- 
telligent law giver ? Let reason do her 



Is There a Creator Called Godf 11 

best to trace known facts to reasonable and 
competent causes, giving due credit to na- 
ture's laws in every case, back of all the 
intricate machinery is the hand of an in- 
telligent, omnipotent Grod. Hence of this 
fact we are also fully assured by the same 
evidence which proves his existence, power 
and wisdom. Not only are we forced to 
the conclusion that there is a Grod, and 
that his power and wisdom are immeasura- 
bly beyond our own, but we are forced by 
reason to the conclusion that the grandest 
thing created is not superior to its Cre- 
ator. 

What could be more reasonable than the 
exercise of power, which we see manifested 
in the creation of countless worlds about 
ns, and in the wonderful variety of earth ? 
What could be more reasonable than the 
creation of man, endowed with reason and 
judgment, capable of appreciating the 
works of Grod, and judging of his wisdom, 
justice, power and love ? All this is rea- 
sonable and in perfect accordance with 
facts known to us. Is it not reasonable to 
suppose that such an infinitely wise and 
good being, having made a creature capa- 



1 2 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

ble of appreciating himself and his plans, 
would be moved by his love and justice to 
supply the wants of that creature's nature 
by giving him some revelation ? Would it 
not be a reasonable supposition, that God 
would supply to man information concern- 
ing the object of his existence, and his 
plans for his future? On the contrary, 
we ask, would it not be unreasonable to 
suppose that such a Creator would make 
such a creature as man, endow him 
with powers of reason reaching out into 
the future, and yet make no revelation of 
his plans to meet those longings? Such a 
course would be unreasonable, because 
contrary to the character which we reason- 
ably attribute to God ; contrary to the 
proper course of a being controlled by jus- 
tice and love. 

Having established the reasonableness 
of expecting a revelation of God's will and 
plan concerning our race, we will examine 
the general character of the Bible, which 
claims to be just such a revelation. Since 
the light of nature leads us to expect a 
fuller revelation of God than that which 
nature supplies, the reasonable, thinking 



Is There a Creator Called God? 13 

mind Avill be prepared to examine the 
claims of anything purporting to be a di- 
vine revelation, which bears a reasonable 
surface evidence of the truthfulness of 
such claims. The Bible claims to be such 
a revelation from God, and it does come to 
us with sufficient surface evidence as to the 
probable correctness of its claims, and 
gives us a reasonable hope that closer in- 
vestigation will disclose more complete and 
positive evidence that it is indeed the word 
of God. 

We will examine some of the revelations 
purporting to be from God to man through 
the Bible, and we have no reason to doubt 
but what the word of God revealed to man 
is found in the Bible. What is a revela- 
tion ? It is an act of revealing sacred com- 
munications. Do we find in the Bible that 
God has revealed anything sacred to man ? 
The Bible proves that God has given man 
a revelation of himself, all through the 
Bible, from Genesis to Kevelation. God 
gave a revelation to Adam and Eve, the 
first pair of the human race, as found in 
the Bible. God gave revelations to differ- 
ent ones down to the time of Moses ; then 



1 4 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

one of the greatest revelations ever re- 
vealed from God to man, was given to Mo- 
ses by an angel upon mount Sinai, the law 
of the ten commandments; that which was 
immortal in its principle, never to become 
null and void. This revelation to Moses 
was based upon equity, and adjusted to 
the reason of man, that it might in his 
mind be reasonable, and leave man in such 
a condition that he could not deny the re- 
ality of the revelation from God to man, 
found in the Bible. This revelation of 
law from mount Sinai, is a standard of law 
through all ages of the world. The pro- 
clamation of that law has been honored by 
all civilized nations down to the present 
time, and will be until man ceases to be 
born. 

We will notice another great and won- 
derful revelation revealed to man through 
Jesus Christ. In this revelation God re- 
veals to man his love, wisdom and power, 
and the plan for the salvation of the hu- 
man race. This revelation is so simple in 
its character as to adjust itself to the rea- 
son of man, and leaves no room for argu- 
ment. It is plain. It leaves no room for 



Is There a Creator Called God? 15 

man to say there is no God. This God 
that is represented here is the true God of 
this universe, and not that Jewish imagin- 
ary God that gets angry at trifles, and re- 
pented that he ever made man. My rea- 
son teaches me that I cannot accept every- 
thing written in the Bible. Why ? Be- 
cause all things written in the Bible are 
not reasonable ; and with these conditions 
before me, I must as an honest man, 
through my reason, conclude that the 
word and revelation of God to man is found 
wTitten in the Bible, regardless of the er- 
rors and tampering with the Bible through 
the different translations and revisions it 
has passed through down to the nineteenth 
century. 

We find in the Bible two different Gods 
presented to man. One of these Gods is a 
God of love, and infinite in perfection, 
whose nature is love, and cannot get an- 
gry. If he could, reason would speak in 
honor of equity and the perfection of God, 
which would destroy the element of per- 
fection, and put God on a level with finite 
man. The Bible is at war with itself in 
regard to God. Some of the writers say 



16 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

God has been seen by man, face to face ; 
then the same writer says God has not 
been seen. Some writers say that God is 
perfect, and cannot get angry ; some writ- 
ers say that God gets angry at man, and is 
ready to destroy man. Reason in man ad- 
mits the reasonableness that God has given 
man a revelation in the Bible in regard to 
his plans, wisdom, power and love. Rea- 
son cannot doubt for a moment that there 
is an intelligent Creator, God, manifested 
in the Bible by his word and revelation. 

Man, with all his reasoning powers, can- 
not comprehend and reason out the ele- 
ment and principle of the infinite love of 
God. Man is lost when he tries to know 
what it is. If it was finite love, we could 
comprehend it from finite man ; but 
infinite love is beyond the comprehension 
of man, only as it is manifested in the soul 
by obedience to the law of God; and in this 
condition man's conception of the love of 
God can be realized only in part, for his 
ways are past finding out by man. Then 
how will man comprehend infinite love I 
Through the love and nature of finite man 
in this mortal existence. If the finite mind 



Is There a Creator Called God f 17 

can penetrate to the fulness of the love of 
God, then he can comprehend the full 
power evolving from the spirit power of 
the infinite love of God. Genesis xxxii. 
30 : Jacob said, t; I have seen God face to 
face. " Exodus xxxiii. 11 : w * And the Lord 
spake unto Moses face to face, as a man 
speaketh unto his friend/ 1 This is not an 
allegory. The principle and form of this 
Scripture is written literally to the letter, 
exact, meaning just what it says. And in 
the 20th verse of the same chapter: 4i And 
he said, Thou canst not see my face, for 
there shall no man see me and live/' John 
i. 18: No man hath seen God at anytime/ 1 
The above Scripture is literal to the letter, 
exact. Here we find a collision in the 
Scripture. What shall we do with it \ 
Shall we act the part of a hypocrite, and 
interpret it to harmonize with the dogma 
of -the so-called Christian religion of the 
present age, or shall we be honest, and 
give it to the world in its true meaning ? 
By all means give it to man as it means. 
The God of this universe is not responsible 
for the collision of that Scripture. The 
fault lies in man. If an angel appeared to 



18 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible, 

Jacob instead of God, as his representative, 
it does not destroy the principle of this 
Scripture, If an angel spoke to Jacob, he 
spake the mind of God as a messenger rep- 
resenting God. 

Genesis vi. 6, 7: In this Scripture God 
speaks, and not an angel: ''And it re- 
pented the Lord that he had made man on 
the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. 1 ' 
We find here a revelation purporting to be 
from God, supposed to be written by Mo- 
ses. Reason speaks in man, and ignores 
this text, and repudiates it as inconsistent 
and unreasonable, to harmonize it with 
the nature of God. In this condition as 
written, it cannot be accepted as a revela- 
tion from God. The account of this his- 
tory, as found in Genesis, informs us that 
man was very wicked, and in this condi- 
tion God said it repented him that he made 
man on the earth, and grieved him at his 
heart. It says, c 4 God saw that the wick- 
edness of man was great in the earth.' 7 
Does this represent the God that created 
this universe, whose divine nature is eter- 
nal, and knew the end of all his works 
from the beginning ? If this be true, then 



Is There a Creator Called God? 19 

this came unexpected to God, which was 
the cause of his repenting that he made 
man, and grieved him at the heart. Rea- 
son, and Scripture in other parts of the 
Bible, tell us that it is impossible for God 
to repent, as his divine nature is perfec- 
tion, and all of his infinite plans were 
made before the foundation of this earth; 
and in this condition, if any mistake was 
made in his plan, it is positive proof that 
God is not infinite. Reason and the Bible, 
and nature's laws, speak to man that the 
infinite God cannot make a mistake. The 
very nature of this story cannot harmonize 
with the infinite attributes that make up 
the divine nature of God. This story lacks 
good logic, and the principle of it is void 
of reason, and cannot stand to be criticized. 
Then who is responsible for this blunder ? 
and who is the author of this writing ? We 
will examine in a reasonable way, and see 
if w^e can trace it to the right one. 

In the first place, this book of Genesis is 
supposed to be written by Moses, and for 
argument, we will admit that Moses wrote 
it. This revelation was given to Noah, 
937 years before the birth of Moses. Where 



20 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

did Moses get his information, and how did 
he get it? The best authority we have is, 
that he got it through tradition. Some 
assume that Abraham might have brought 
some documents from ancient inscriptions 
from Chaldea. In the condition of this 
event, is it reasonable for man to believe 
that this event could be handed down 
through tradition for over nine hundred 
years, without making any mistakes. It 
could not. Then as a rule, the Jewish 
writers wrote after their imagination. 
Moses in writing this event in such a crude 
state, pictured out and imagined in his 
mind the make up of this God, and by 
doing so, he made this God out on a level 
with finite man, and this is the condition 
of this God as Moses gives it to us in Scrip- 
ture, and all through the Bible. We find 
this angry God portrayed to man through 
the ignorance of the writers ; and no doubt 
they did the best they could under the sur- 
rounding circumstances, and the mentally 
crude condition of the writers ; and in this 
condition it has been handed down to man 
to the present age, without being corrected 
by the different revisers, and left in this 



Is There a Creator Called Godf 21 

condition for the cultured mind, and the 
development of man in the nineteenth cen- 
tury, to estimate the God that made man on 
a higher plane than represented in the 
Bible. Who cannot in harmony with his 
attributes, change in nature from love to 
hatred, or make any mistakes in his crea- 
tion. 

And with all of these blunders for our 
consideration, we find another God por- 
trayed in Scripture, a God of perfection, 
with but one nature, that is love to man, 
and the infinite care of His creation. 

We will consider the true God in Scrip- 
ture as we present it for consideration : 

Isa. 37-16 — " Thou art God alone." 

Isa 47-9 — " I am God, there is none else." 

Hos. 11-9 — "I am God, and not man " 

John 4-24 — " God is a spirit " 

John 4-16 — " God is Love " 

I Cor 14-33 — "For God is not the author of con- 
fusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the 
saints." 

This other God, as portrayed in the above 
Scripture, is a God of confusion, a God that 
did not comprehend his creation of man, 
until he saw the wickedness of man on the 
earth. Then it appears he got his eyes 
opened so as to comprehend the nature of 



22 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible, 

man ; then lie repented and grieved him at 
his heart that he made man. Reason teaches 
man that this is confusion, and turned God 
from his equilibrium, and made him ready 
to destroy the man of his Creation. 

Isa. 40-28 — ' ' Hast thou not known ? Hast thou not 
heard, that the everlasting God. the Lord, the 
creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not. 
neither is weary ? There is no searching of his 
understanding 

This means infinite in nature, not circum- 
scribed, to inclose, to limit, but to be un- 
limited in character, this proves to man 
that God is perfection, and could not make 
a mistake in creating man so as to repent 
for creating man as he did. 

Some dogmas and creeds of this age advo- 
cate that the anger of God is infinite in na- 
ture, and not like the anger of finite man. 
Admitting this to be true, it proves that 
there is a collision going on in the nature 
of God, infinite love and infinite anger, one 
a positive and the other a negative. This 
is contrary to the fundamental principles 
that make up the Godhead. This God is per- 
fect, whose thoughts are infinite, and not 
like the thoughts of finite man. Positive, 
a unit, a oneness in the nature of his entity; 



Is There a Creator Off lied God/ 23 

love, infinite in nature, it is impossible for 
infinite anger to come from God. There is 
no such element as infinite anger. 

In summing up this case we will say, 
after giving due allowance for the many 
errors and mistakes found in the Bible, it 
is evident from reason and the nature of the 
scripture, that there is to be found in the 
Bible, a revelation from Grod to man. 

The Bible is the torch of civilization 
and liberty. Its influence for good in so- 
ciety has been recognized by the greatest 
statesmen, even though they for the most 
part have looked at it through the various 
glasses of conflicting creeds, which, while 
upholding the Bible, greviously misrepre- 
sent its teachings. The grand old book is 
in many cases, unintentionally, but wof ully , 
misrepresented by a great number of the 
creeds and dogmas they hold to. The 
Bible is the oldest book in existence ; it has 
outlived the storms of thirty centuries. 
Men have endeavored by every means pos- 
sible to banish it from the face of the earth. 
They have hidden it, buried it, made it a 
crime punishable with death to have it in 
possession, and the most bitter and relent- 



24 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

less persecutions have been waged against 
those who had faith in it : but still the book 
lives to-day, while many of its foes slumber 
in death, and hundred of volumes written 
to discred it the entire contents of the Bible, 
and to overthrow its influence, are long 
since forgotten. The Bible has found its 
way, with all the mistakes made in the 
many revisions it has passed through, and 
with all of this the word of God is regis- 
tered throughout the Bible, and will live 
on, while its enemies and foes will slumber 
into their eternal graves. 

The fact that this book has survived so 
many centuries, notwithstanding such un- 
paralleled efforts to banish and destroy it, 
is at least strong circumstantial evidence 
that the great author it claims, has also been 
its preserver; regardless of the many errors 
and mistakes, God's power must be used, 
and that in harmony with his own nature, 
whatever may be the means to that end. 
Whatever may be the operation of his 
power, the final outcome must be consis- 
tent with God's nature and character, and 
every step must be approved of his infinite 
wisdom. 



CHAPTER II. 



WHAT IS MAN ? 



WHAT is man? What constitutes the 
entity of man as we find him in this 
age of the world ? Practical examination 
of man, from the best skill of the present 
age, and the decision given to tfte world 
from this skill, is proof in its character, 
that man is an animal of the highest order, 
and whatever befalleth the beast befalleth 
man; as the one dieth, so dieth the other; 
they have all one breath; so that a man 
hath no pre-eminence above a beast; all go 
into one place; all are of the dust, and all 
turn to dust again. The operation of the 
same law that gives life to beast gives life 
to man. Man eats, drinks, sleeps, and is 
subject to disease, decay and death, and 
the same befalleth the beast. Who knoweth 
the spirit of man that goeth upward, and 
the spirit of the beast that goeth downward 
to the earth ? Who knoweth whether the 
spirit of man as an entity, conscious as to 



26 Dager's Interpretation of ike Bible, 

its condition, will exist as such beyond the 
grave? As far as man can examine this 
question in his finite condition, it is all 
darkness beyond the grave. 

Was Adam the first man created on this 
earth ? The Scripture from Genesis to Rev- 
elation, informs us that Adam was the first 
man created on this earth. If not true, 
then tbe contents contained in the consti- 
tutions of the new covenant is of no use 
to the race, and must fall to the ground as 
a farce and humbug, for the new covenant 
came through Jesus, the second Adam, to 
redeem the race from Adam's transgression. 

Now, if Adam was not the first and did 
not fall, then there would have been no use 
of God calling the new covenant in ques- 
tion to redeem man, for there would not 
have been any one to redeem. 

There is a connecting link in the narra- 
tive of the law, the prophets and the gos- 
pel, from Genesis to Revelation, and if one 
link be destroyed then the principle in the 
constitution that governs Scripture is dead 
in its redeeming powers. For man, if the 
principles of this creation spoken of in Gen- 
esis, regardless to the errors made by the 



What is Man/ 27 

writer, be not true, then this Bible is of no 
more use to the race than a common spell- 
ing book. 

The creation of man as we find it in Scrip- 
ture is an allegory, and must be considered 
as such. Scripture informs us that God 
made man from the earth. How ? And the 
process man was made, the Scripture is 
silent, and any idea that man might form 
as to this question, would be in its nature, 
a speculation. Man has never found out, 
nor never will, how God created man in 
the beginning. According to Scripture was 
Adam made a peref ect man ? He was not. 
Was he made a spotless man ? He was not. 
Was he made a good man ? He was. Was 
he made subject to sin, and was his nature 
susceptible to lust after evil as well as good ? 
It was. Did he have all of the elements 
and gifts and possibilities to be developed 
in him when -he was created ? He did. Did 
God decree in his will to make Adam as he 
did ? He did. Was it the purpose of God 
that Adam should fall in a condition to 
know good from evil? It was. Was it 
necessary that Adam should fall ? It was. 
Give your reason by Scripture. In the first 



28 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

chapter of Genesis we learn that it was the 
purpose of God, that Adam and Eve should 
be the father and mother of the race, and 
be fruitful and multiply and replenish the 
earth. Were all the elements necessary to 
carry out this plan incorporated in the being 
of Adam and Eve ? Scripture said they were 
Could these elements in them be developed 
so as to carry out the purpose of God ? If 
they had remained in their righteous state 
they could not, and the earth never would 
have been peopled. It was necessary for 
Adam to fall, that the eyes of their under- 
standing might be opened and see their 
condition, and bring them in a condition, 
that they might be able to carry out the 
order that God gave them, to multiply and 
replenish the earth. Was Adam made a 
perfect image of God ? He was not. Then 
what are the considerations in Scripture. in 
regard to this question, where it says that 
God made man in His image. 

Genesis i. 26, 27. li And God said, let 
us make man in our image. 17 ' L So God cre- 
ated man in His own image. " 

The first text is plural and makes out more 
than one God, the second text is a unite, 



What is Man ? 29 

which makes out one God. This Scripture 
is at war with itself. The first text is not 
reliable. The Scripture through the Bible 
teach but one God. The second text in- 
forms us that there is but one God, which 
is in harmony with the principle involved 
in Scripture. Then what is this image of 
God in man ? 

Colossians iii. 10. " And have put on 
the new man, which is renewed in know- 
ledge 1 after the image of Him that created 
him." 

The image of God in man is righteousness 
through conversion, the new birth. By 
putting on the new man, that is the king- 
dom of Heaven in the soul, the image of 
God, man can lose by leaving the path of 
virtue and go on the broad road, by dis- 
obedience. 

Did Adam fall and lose the image after 
God? He did. How did he lose it ? By 
being disobedient. Did God promise a rem- 
edy at that fall, to redeem man from his 
falling state ? He did. How ? Through 
the seed of the woman. Scripture in this 
case does not mean to be understood, that 
the entity of Adam was in the image of 



30 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible, 

God. It was the law and light of God 
stamped in his heart and conscience, and 
strictly obeying that law that gave him the 
image of God. Paul tells us, that a man 
converted to good works by being obedient 
to the law of God, has in that condition, 
put on the new man which is renewed in 
knowledge after the image of God that cre- 
ated him. This is the positive proof what 
the image of God is in man. The Scripture 
is plain as to this question ; it is not the 
man as a soul entity, it is the law and light 
of God in the man to guide him into obed 
ience, and if obedient, he has put on the 
righteousness after the image of God. 

Was Adam made a finite entity as man 
is to-day ? He was. Did he have the same 
kind of an organism as the man of to-day ? 
He did. Scripture tells us that the race 
was made of one blood, that flowed through 
the veins of the race from Adam to the 
present time. Did Adam commit infinite 
sin ? No, he did not. It was finite, and 
must be punished accordingly, for the 
good of Adam, limited in duration. If this 
is not true, then the God of this Bible is a 
tyrant, and beneath the notice or consid- 



What is Man.' 31 

eration of the man that he created and 
forced into this world, and made him as he 
was in nature, through his own counsel, 
and for the purpose of falling, to bring 
about a condition to open his eyes, and 
make him a fit subject to do evil as well as 
good, it was necessary that it should be 
done, for God to bring about his infinite 
purpose, that man might taste the bitter 
as well as the sweet, the means to develop 
and round out man for a purpose, and that 
purpose was for the eternal good of man 
in this world and in the world to come, 

We now come to the creation of Eve. 

Genesis ii. 21-23. "And the Lord God 
caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam 
and he slept : and he took one of his ribs 
and closed up the flesh instead thereof, 
and the rib which the Lord God har 1 taken 
from man made he a woman, and brought 
her unto the man. And Adam said. This 
is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my 
flesh; she shall be called woman, because 
she was taken out of man/* 

Verse 24. • • Therefore shall a man leave 
his father and his mother and shall cleave 
unto his wife, and they shall be one flesh/' 



32 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

Chap. iii. 16. "And thy desire shall be 
to thy husband, and he shall rule over 
thee." 

1 Cor. xi. 3. "But I would have you 
know that the head of every man is Christ, 
and the head of the woman is the man; 
and the head of Christ is G-od." 

The Scripture sustains the creation of 
Eve as stated in this allegory, and the 
New Testament confirms it as a truth. 

The creation of Eve is a mystery to the 
world. The race is shrouded in darkness 
as to the true interpretation of the creation 
of Eve in this allegory, and will ever re- 
main a mystery, as the Scripture is silent 
in regard to it. The world of man has spec- 
ulated, and will continue on in giving new 
ideas as to the true meaning of the rib that 
Eve was made of. Evolutions in science 
proclaim to the world that they have the 
key that solves the mystery of the creation 
of man, and promulgate the doctrine that 
man evolved from a lower animal, without 
sufficient proof to convince man that they 
are correct. The world in this age of 
thought is still in darkness as to how man 
was created in the beginning. 



What is Ma?} t 33 

In the creation of Eve from Adam, do 
we find an element typical of matrimony \ 
We do. As Adam and Eve were joined 
together as husband and wife by the gov- 
ernment of Grod, so must the race in all 
ages of the world follow the example as a 
principle of purity, of the sacredness of the 
marriage vow. 

1 Cor. xi. 8, 9. %k For the man is not of 
the woman ; but the woman of the man." 
This evidence is from Paul, that Adam was 
first made, then the woman. ww Neither 
was the man created for the woman, but 
the woman for the man." This is in har- 
mony as stated in Genesis, that Grod made 
Eve, and brought her to him as a help 
meet for him. 

2 Cor. xi. 3. wc But I fear lest by any 
means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through 
his subtilty, so; your minds should be cor- 
rupted from the simplicity that is in 
Christ." The evidence in this Scripture is 
positive that the doctrine of the fall of 
Adam and Eve through the deception of 
the serpent was not new to Paul, but fa- 
miliar to him as a scholar who understood 
Scripture. If there was no truth in the 



34 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible, 

creation and fall of Adam and Eve, Paul 
would have never advocated the same in 
his teachings. The creation of Adam 
and Eve, and their fall, was, and is, the 
first link in the chain of God's eternal pur- 
pose, which commenced then, and will not 
end until the consummation of the race, 
saved in the bosom of God the Father. 

Question. Can God carry out his pur- 
poses throughout all the ages of this world, 
and not interfere with the free agency of 
man ? 

Answer. God can work out all his pur- 
poses down to the end of time, and not in- 
terfere with the will power of man if left 
alone. 

Eph. i. 9-11. i4 Having made known 
unto us the mystery of his will, according 
to his good pleasure which he hath pur- 
posed in himself. 

Verse 10. LL That in the dispensation of 
the fullness of times he might gather to- 
gether in one all things in Christ, both 
which are in heaven and which are on 
earth, even in him." 

Verse 11. "In whom also we have ob- 
tained an inheritance, being predestinated 



What is Man t 35 

according to the purpose of him who work- 
eth all things after the counsel of his own 
will." 

Question. Do you say that predestina- 
tion is true \ 

Answer. I do ; Scripture justifies the 
statement; and the unchangeable purpose 
of God. God has so adjusted his law x s to 
man that he can carry out his eternal pur- 
poses and leave man inexcusable to God 
for his responsibility if left alone. 

Question. Was Adam responsible for 
his fall ? 

Answer. According to the law of jus- 
tice and equity Adam was not responsible 
for his fall. 

Question. Who was responsible \ 

Answer. God, if this Scripture is reli- 
able. 

Question. Why, you surprise me. How r 
can that he ? 

Answer. We are informed by Scripture 
that God created Adam for a purpose, and 
that purpose was to inhabit the earth with 
man; and to consummate that, Adam had 
to fall, to become the father of the race; 
and in view of this fact it was necessary 



36 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

that God should make this condition that 
Adam was placed in to bring about the 
purpose of God ; and the purpose and 
condition that God placed Adam in, 
was the cause of his fall; for without the 
condition and position that God put him 
in, Adam would not have fallen. God was 
his own counselor, and Adam the clay to 
be fashioned as God saw fit so as to carry 
out his purpose, and that made God, by 
the law of his own attributes, responsible 
for the fall of Adam. 

Question. Why, how is this I was Adam 
not free to act and do as he saw fit, to obey 
or disobey \ 

Answer. Yes; Adam was put into the 
garden to obey God, according to this Scrip- 
ture. We must consider this creation an 
allegory, and interpret it the best we can. It 
looks as if God used Adam as a machine to 
carry out his purpose. God had' a perfect 
right to do so, for Adam was his, and to 
do with him as he saw fit in bringing about 
a condition to start the propagation of the 
race. God is responsible, and has no ex- 
cuse for creating Adam and those condi- 
tions as he did. He controlled this all for 



What is Man t 37 

the benefit of man. Practically God did 
not punish Adam and Eve, as man is pun- 
ished to-day. The judgment pronounced 
upon Adam and Eve for disobeying was 
not of the same nature as punishment due 
sin in this age. This had to be done to 
carry out the form of the purpose of God, 
and in this condition God says, Because 
you have done this, I will now open your 
eyes as to how you are to bring forth off- 
spring, and get your bread by the sweat of 
your face. This is not punishment for sin, 
for we do the same thing to-day in obedi- 
ence to the law. And in view of all these 
facts just considered, God is responsible 
for the creation and fall of Adam, which I 
will sustain by Scripture as I proceed. 
God is not a coward; he is not like man, 
that will shrink from responsibility. The 
God of this universe takes the responsibil- 
ity upon himself for the creation and con- 
summation of all things, according to his 
own counsel. 

Romans ix. 15: " For he saith to Moses, 
I will have mercy on whom I will have 
mercy, and I will have compassion on whom 
I will have compassion/ 1 



38 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

This Scripture is literal and plain in its 
nature. God gives man to understand that 
he will not be dictated in the manage- 
ment of the race of man. Verse 16: 4t So 
then it is not of man that willeth, nor of 
man that runneth, but of God that showeth 
mercy." 

This was the case with Adam; God made 
him a chosen vessel to carry out his pur- 
pose through the ignorance of Adam, and 
direct under God the supervisor to guide 
Adam so as to get into condition to start 
the race. When God brought this earth 
into existence from the womb of eternity, 
with no one to dictate his purposes, he 
made it for himself, and will control and 
govern it in harmony with his infinite wis- 
dom. Rom. ix. 18: il Therefore hath he 
mercy on whom he will have mercy, and 
whom he will he hardeneth." 

Verse 19 : " Thou wilt say then unto me, 
Why doth he yet find fault, for who hath 
resisted his will ?" 

Verse 20: tc Nay, but O man, who art 
thou that repliest against God ? shall the 
thing formed say to him that formed it, 
Why hast thou made me thus?" 



What is Man f 39 

Man has always been a fault finding 
being; if it rains too much, he finds fault; 
if it does not rain enough, he finds fault 
for not understanding the principle as to 
why it is so. If he brings an invalid child 
into this world, he finds fault with God. 
44 But, O man, who art thou that repliest 
against God ?" But ask yourself and your 
wife, and your ancestors, how your invalid 
child came into this world. O, ignorant 
man, study the laws of nature, and obey 
the dictates of its voice, then the womb 
that has heretofore brought forth invalids 
and dwarfs will then come up to the stand- 
ard of the law of obedience, and bring 
forth Websters and healthy offspring, as 
God purposed it should be if nature's laws 
were obeyed. 

Man, through ignorance, finds fault with 
God because He made Adam as He did, and 
used him as a machine of His own. And 
he w T as His own to carry out His infinite 
purposes, that he should fall. Oh, man ! 
consider this great question, and then con- 
sider the necessity of the fall of Adam. 
You then will keep silent and not find fault 
with God because Adam fell, and through 



40 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

the fall, an unborn race was stung with the 
poison of this production, and without the 
poison of this production, which made a 
choice to act in the freedom of man, which 
was the very element to cause man to de- 
velop and cultivate all the means and pos- 
sibilities in man to round him out, so as to 
make him capable to enjoy the happiness 
of the eternal world, as God purposed in 
the beginning of the creation of man. 

Back in eternity, God, whose name is 
eternity, who only hath immortality, dwell- 
ing in the light which no man can ap- 
proach unto, whom no man hath seen, nor 
can see, saw fit in His infinite wisdom to 
create this earth and people it. Did God 
create all things and for Himself, through 
His infinite counsel ? He did. Did He 
create it for a purpose ? He did. Did God 
make a mistake in creating this earth and 
people ? He did not. Did He foresee the 
end of His works from the beginning ? He 
did. Did God repent for creating this 
world ? He did not. If He had He would 
not have been a God of perfection. 

When man, in his finite capacity, con- 
siders this world as he finds it, and be- 



What is Man/ 41 

holds the misery and sorrow, sickness and 
death, the idol of a father and mother 
taken from their bosom, through sickness 
and death ; the family tie broken ; with 
hearts bleeding in mourning for the miss- 
ing idol, who they have borne to the grave, 
and the crimes and the different troubles 
and sorrows of earth, causes man sometimes 
to think that there is a wheel loose in the 
machinery that governs this world. But, 
dear ones of the earth, do not for a moment 
suspect the God that gave you an existence, 
but have faith and trust in God, who is in- 
visible, and whose w r ays are past finding out, 
and who will, in His infinite wisdom and 
love, bring you out of all earth's sorrows, 
into that light and life contained in the 
New Covenant, by being cultivated by these 
means, to round out your manhood upon a 
high plane of thought, purity and holiness, 
which is incorporated in His infinite pur- 
pose before the world began. 

It is not for man to dictate the works of 
God, and how nature's laws should be man- 
aged to govern this world. But, vain man, 
keep silent, remember you move, and live 
and have a being in God. Be content with 



42 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

the world, only do all you can to make it 
better by being obedient to the law of God, 

Question. What constitutes the entity 
of man. 

Answer. Scripture defines it that it is 
the inner man — the spirit, that will live on 
in the eternal world as an entity holding 
its individuality. 

Question. Is this entity immortal ? 

Answer. Scripture informs us that the 
entity of man is finite in nature and a 
helpless being, unable to exist a moment 
without the help of God. 

Question. What constitutes immortal 
and immortality ? 

Answer. It is part and parcel of the 
Godhead, eternal existence. The princi- 
ple in Scripture teaches us that God is 
eternity, and without God there would be 
no eternity. By law it takes an eternal 
entity to constitute that word God, who is 
immortality. 

1 Tim. 6, 16. lt Who only hath immor- 
tality dwelling in the light which no man 
can approach unto, whom no man hath 
seen, nor can see." 

Paul, the great scholar of that age, well 



What is Man ? \* 

understood the interpretation of Scripture, 
is positive in his gospel, that God is the only 
entity in the universe that hath immor- 
tality. The principle that governs Scrip- 
ture is positive proof that immortality is 
self-existing. Paul, one of the best writers 
and expounders of Scripture, positively de- 
clares in his writings, that there is but one 
conscious entity that can exist of itself, 
without the aid of a higher power, and 
who is independent in character, and that 
is God. Immortality belongs in the God- 
head and not in man; if it did, man would 
be self-existing as an entity, and indepen- 
dent from the help of God, and could raise 
up in his dignity, as a God, and say to the 
God of his universe, L ' I ask no favors of 
you, I can live and exist without you, 
being equal with you. 11 Oh, vain man! 
Filled with a carnal selfishness, listen to 
Paul, who says that man lives, moves and 
has a being in God, helpless in his own 
being and cannot exist for a moment without 
nursing from the breast of immortality 
as a child from a mothers bosom. 

The churches for ages have advocated 
from their pulpits that man is immortal, 



44 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible, 

and have not given correct interpretation 
in regard to it, but have bent the meaning 
of this Scripture to harmonize it to the 
dogma of a vicarious atonement, nursing 
the doctrine of endless misery, so demoral- 
izing and damnable in its character, and 
beneath the notice of the uncivilized man 
on the island of the sea. Oh, nations of 
the earth, awake from your sleep ! Think, 
read, and understand for yourselves. Is it 
consistent and in harmony with the law in 
your own being, that God would make man 
a subject to an endless hell and misery, if 
he was not converted to a doctrine advo- 
cated by some of the churches of to-day. 
How much longer will you be rocked in the 
cradle of an orthodox hell and an angry 
God. Oh, dear ones of earth, respect your 
God as a God of love and not as a tyrant 
that walketh the earth, place the infinite 
standard of God on a high plane of purity, 
who will, in His own good time gather to- 
gether His offspring of the earth in the 
bosom of the father, where heaven dwell- 
eth. 



CHAPTER III. 



WHAT IS MAN ? 



Question. For what purpose did God 
make man ? 

Answer. Oh, vain man of the nine- 
teenth century, how much longer will you 
contend with God, and find fault with the 
workings of nature's law upon this earth, 
and the inhabitants thereof. You rise 
up in the weakness of your finite under- 
standing and contend with God, and curse 
and blame God for the misery that occurs 
upon this earth and hurl from your lips, 
why God made things as they are, I could 
have made a better world than this if I had 
been God, and why God suffered this world 
to be steeped in ignorance, as it is in this 
age of the world; why God permits the 
sickly invalid to be born from its mother's 
womb, and live a life of fifty years in pain 
from disease, dragging out a miserable life 
and then die. You say why is this ? Is God 
asleep. Is there no love in God, that he 



46 Bayers Interpretation of the Bible. 

should suffer this. If I had been God, I 
would have closed its life at its birth from 
the womb. And why God suffers to loose 
the winds of the earth, and in its rage de- 
stroy property and the lives of His own off- 
spring. The sea in its rage takes in its 
bosom ship after ship, laden with human 
beings. Let God speak. Where wast thou, 
oh, vain man of the earth, before I brought 
this earth into existence ? Where wast thou 
when I divided light from darkness, and 
created the first man upon this earth ? 
Where wast thou when I decreed in my will 
to make this earth and make man for My- 
self and no one else ? Did I counsel with 
any one in My creation? Did not the strong 
arm of my own power and wisdom create 
all things ? As I am God and none other, 
hast thou an arm like God ? Declare if 
thou hast understanding. Wilt thou dis- 
annul my judgment? Wilt thou condemn 
me, that thou may est be righteous. An- 
swer these questions, then will I confess 
unto thee that thine own right hand can 
save thee. 

God will answer: When I made this 
earth, I made and prepared everything for 



What is Man f 47 

mail's comfort; before I made him I pur- 
posed him to rule over the earth, and over 
the beasts of the field, and over every living 
thing upon the earth subject to my law. 
I prepared the seed of the herb of the field 
when I made the earth; I prepared every- 
thing to grow, and caused them to grow to 
sustain life in every living animal and man 
that I made, and when Adam fell, I drove 
him out from the garden to till the ground 
and to multiply and replenish the earth; 
4t And in the sweat of thy face shalt thou 
eat bread, till thou return unto the ground, 
for out of it wast thou taken." When I, as 
a father, drove Adam from the garden, 
and to labor and get his bread by the 
sweat of his face, did I forsake him as my 
son ? No, I did not. I prepared every- 
thing for his comfort and the future race 
that follows. Did I leave anything un- 
done that ought to have been done for the 
comfort of man and his happiness here and 
hereafter, in case man, with diligence and 
wisdom, complied with the conditions and 
laws connected with that which I pre- 
pared ? No, I did not; and all the misery 
that has occurred from Adam until now in 



48 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

the race, is because they have not complied 
with the conditions of my law. The sin 
lieth at their door, and they must suffer 
the effects of violating my law as a reproof 
to man, to learn wisdom's ways, and be 
developed thereby, so as to be in condition 
to comply with my law r s and be benefited 
by receiving the spirit embodied in these 
laws. 

When Adam left the garden to till the 
ground, did he leave it with a diseased 
body, as we find the race in the present 
age ? No, he did not. When God made 
Adam and put him in the garden to dress 
it, he gave him a sound body, free from dis- 
ease; and when he left the garden to till 
the ground, he went with a sound healthy 
body, to begin life and start the race of 
this world. They started as husband and 
wife free from disease; they both had the 
eyes of their understanding opened so as 
to be able to see their condition, and un- 
derstand their obligations to God through 
nature's laws, which were in harmony with 
the law stamped in their heart and con- 
science, and fully comprehended, if prop- 
erly cultivated, which they were in duty 



What is Man f 49 

bound to do for their own benefit; if not, 
then sin lay at their door. 

The garden of Eden in this allegory is 
figurative in character, and not a literal 
garden, as some people think it was. The 
tree of the knowledge of good and evil is 
likewise figurative. The serpent that be- 
guiled Eve was not a reality, but figura- 
tive, and must be interpreted as such. 
God walking in the garden and talking 
with Adam and Eve belongs in the alle- 
gory as a figure, and not literal, as it reads. 
An allegory cannot be itemized in the in- 
terpretation as to the magnitude of the 
principle involved in the allegory. For 
instance, I will present a figurative text of 
the same nature found in Matt. xxiv. 41 : 
''Depart from me, ye cursed, into ever- 
lasting fire, prepared for the devil and his 
angels. " The principle involved in this 
figure is quite severe. The interpretation 
of this text, as found in Scripture, applies 
to the Jews as a nation, who were cursed 
through the principle of law, and lost their 
nationality and were scattered among the 
nations of the earth, until the fullness of 
the Gentiles comes in, -which will be at the 
end of this age. 



50 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

All we can do with an allegory is to get 
the general principle involved in it; every 
word in an allegory cannot be itemized in 
the interpretation; and this is the condi- 
tion of this allegory that I will now inter- 
pret as it comes to me by impression, in a 
spiritnal sense. Some people believe that 
God had a literal garden somewhere on 
this earth, and that he put Adam in it to 
dress it, and that God talked with Adam 
as man talks to man, because the allegory 
reads so. Now if we will use common 
sense and reason in the attributes of na- 
ture's law within us, we will come to a bet- 
ter understanding. 

In the first place, what is the spiritual 
meaning of the garden of Eden ? As it 
comes to me, it is this: the garden of Eden 
in its spiritual sense was the innocence 
and purity of Adam and Eve in their con- 
dition before they fell. 

What w^as the tree of life in its spiritual 
sense ? It was goodness, the principle in- 
volved in their state of purity; and they 
were commanded by God, through his 
Spirit operating upon the conscience of 
Adam and Eve, to eat and feast upon the 



What is Man/ 51 

principle of goodness involved in the con- 
dition of their purity, which was in har- 
mony with the law of their heart and con- 
science. 

What was the tree of knowledge of good 
and evil in its spiritual sense ? If was wis- 
dom according to nature's laws. Adam and 
Eve had to grow and mature a few years 
before coming to the age of maturity; and 
while in this condition, prior to their de- 
velopment, they were in the condition of 
innocence and purity, eating and feasting 
on goodness, the tree of life, that they 
might never die, but forever live happy in 
goodness, and retain the state of purity, 
the garden of Eden. This does not mean 
that they would not die as an entity, for 
they were born to go to dust, from whence 
they came. Live and die, in this allegory, 
means happiness on one side, and misery 
on another. Adam and Eve got this wis- 
dom as a child gets it in this present age. 
A child, by the law of God, is in a state of 
innocence and purity, until it becomes ma- 
tured enough to know right from wrong, 
and sense in some degree, to see the mag- 
nitude of good and evil ; and when devel- 



52 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

oped upon that plane, they have secured 
to themselves by law, wisdom through ac- 
tivity and the cultivation of their mind, 
which means in the allegory, eating of the 
tree of knowledge of good and evil, as wis- 
dom through the development of a person 
secures to him by law a knowledge of good 
and evil; and when this is secured from a 
child, they are then by law responsible for 
their behavior, and have fallen from their 
state of innocence and purity; and in that 
condition the child becomes a subject of 
mercy under the constitution of the New 
Covenant, and the redeeming power of the 
blood of Christ. And this was the precise 
case with Adam and Eve. But some one 
asks the question: It reads that Eve par- 
took first, and then persuaded her hus- 
band, which made her the transgressor. 
This allegory does not mean just as it 
reads. We must draw from it and the sur- 
rounding conditions, then we will be able 
to interpret the spiritual meaning of this 
allegory. The science of manhood and 
womanhood teaches us to-day that woman 
is more susceptive and perceptive than 
man. This was the case with Adam and 



What is Man t 53 

Eve. As thev matured from youth into 
manhood and womanhood, Eve was the 
smartest of the two, and under this condi- 
tion she perceived things sooner than 
Adam, and her susceptive element was 
more sensitive to admit and take in than 
Adam was ; so in this condition Eve ate 
of the tree of knowledge of good and evil 
faster than Adam, which developed her 
sooner in obtaining wisdom, which is the 
knowledge of good and evil. The law of 
God was stamped in their heart and con- 
science, and the probability is that as Eve 
was progressing faster than Adam, and 
leading her husband along faster than he 
could perceive, his conscience condemned 
him; and in this condition reproved his 
wife for leading him in matters that he 
did not yet understand; but Eve in her 
sharp perceptive faculties did not stop to 
listen to Adam, but pushed on and ate of 
the tree of knowledge, which is wisdom; 
and in this high condition of Eve, her fac- 
ulties were so well developed as to prepare 
her to take in evil thoughts and nurse 
them, and admit them through her suscep- 
tive power, and persuade Adam to partake 



54 Dager* Interpretation of the Bible. 

of the same. He yielded to her persua- 
sion, and both fell, she being the trans- 
gressor. 

The serpent spoken of in Genesis was 
not a living animal of any kind. The ob- 
ject was a figure in the allegory, and not a 
reality, to illustrate some spiritual truth. 
The serpent was the tempter, generated 
from the nature and faculties of Eve. Her 
susceptive power so well matured, was in 
a condition to admit evil thoughts and 
nurse them and execute them, which was 
sin. The serpent was a generated tempter, 
cursed by herself, and not an orthodox 
devil. Wherever you find a serpent or 
devil spoken of in Scripture, you will find 
that it is a generated one from man; and 
when man has conquered himself, and 
brought his powers in subjection to the 
obedience of God, he has conquered all the 
devil that there is in this world or any 
other. 

Oh, dear ones of the earth, what more 
can God do for the race than he has done ? 
Has he not done his part to secure the hap- 
piness of man ? What has been the trou- 
ble, at whose door does the fault lie that 



What is Man.' 55 

the race has become so degenerated ? God 
created this beautiful world for man to en- 
joy and rule. By the fall of Adam God 
cursed the earth with thorns and thistles, 
and man to get his bread by the sweat of 
his face, and in this condition it was left 
by the hand of God a beautiful and 
healthy world for man to enjoy in case he 
would be obedient to the law\ When Adam 
and Eve started out into the world to rule 
and subdue it, multiply and replenish the 
earth, they had sound bodies and no dis- 
ease. The law of God was borne in their 
heart and conscience as a dictator, to lead 
and guide them, and show them the differ- 
ence between good and evil. This law in its 
operation upon their conscience, told them 
to be obedient, and not to violate any law; if 
they did, then sin was at their door, and 
would cause them to suffer for disobedi- 
ence. 

Did God start Adam and Eve, our first 
parents of the earth, empty-handed, and 
did he not provide for their wants ? He 
did not; but the love of a father God did 
provide for their wants, only they must 
now labor and be active, in harmony with 



56 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

the laws of God. In this condition Adam 
and Eve were king and queen of the earth, 
as God made them rulers over all of the 
earth. God in his infinite wisdom foresaw 
the wants of the race, which he w^as to cre- 
ate in the future; and to supply these 
wants for the benefit and happiness of the 
race, God in his wisdom, while creating 
the earth, generated the seed in the earth 
for the herb, and all that grow on the 
earth, for the benefit of man. With all 
the different diseases that man has had, or 
ever will have, there is a remedy in the 
earth to cure them all, prepared through 
the wisdom of God at the creation of this 
world, 

God made Adam a free moral agent, to 
make a choice and act, and to cultivate 
and develop the gifts and possibilities 
within him, and started Adam and Eve out 
into the world under these conditions, and 
likewise the race down to the end of time 
for man. God made man a progressive be- 
ing, and all the knowledge that man gets, 
he must labor for. Man should investi- 
gate, and by practice study out the differ- 
ent herbs and roots of the earth to see what 



r;7 



What is Man.' 57 

disease this and that will cure. God has 
provided the remedies ; it is for man to 
study them out. That is what God made 
man for. God did not make man to rob 
the widow and orphan, to make his mil- 
lions through dishonesty, visit the water- 
ing places of the world, live in the condi- 
tion of vanity, and let those noble gifts of 
the inner man die out, and he become a 
pauper in this world, as far as knowledge is 
concerned of the things that pertain to the 
good of man. 

When Adam and Eve fell from their con- 
dition of innocence and purity, they began 
to die and degenerate, and this death has 
followed the race to the present time; and 
to-day we find the race diseased from the 
crown of the head to the sole of the feet. 
What has been the trouble I Could this 
have been avoided to some extent ? It 
could. If it could not, then God would 
be unjust, and his laws without power. 
God made man to obey nature's laws ; if 
obeyed, the effect would be better health 
and a stronger mind, and more purity of 
character and less vanity and crime. 
Adam and Eve began to sin soon after 
their fall from innocence and purity. 



58 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

The first man born of woman was Cain. 
He became a murderer, one of the worst 
crimes that man can commit in any age of 
the world, which is positive proof , as Paul 
says in his writings, that man was made 
subject to sin, and if not properly culti- 
vated and spiritualized by obeying the law, 
he would sin, and become a transgressor. 
Was Cain, as a man, responsible for that 
crime ? He was, from the truth that God 
passed judgment upon him for the crime. 

Here comes another inquirer. Where 
did Cain get his wife ? There must have 
been other people beside them, as he knew 
his wife in the land of Nod. Let the 
Scripture answer. The Scripture is silent 
as to who Cain married ; it is also silent as 
to who Seth married, the third son of 
Adam. There is but one conclusion to ar- 
rive at, and that is this: If the Scripture 
be true in regard to Adam and Eve being 
the first of the race, then Cain must have 
taken his sister, as there were daughters 
born to Eve as well as sons. If the Scrip- 
ture in regard to this be not true, and 
there were other people besides Adam and 
Eve, then they could have married wives 



What is Man ? 59 

from those people. But in my opinion, I 
believe, as I understand Scripture, that 
Adam and Eve were the father and mother 
of the race, and that Cain and Seth took 
their own sisters as wives to begin the race, 
as there was no other way if Scripture be 
true. Where Scripture is silent on some 
points, we are forced to assume a point; 
but it must be consistent, and in harmony 
with the principle involved in the condi- 
tion of the question. This is why I as- 
sume that Cain and Seth married their sis- 
ters. I will say to the inquirer, The way 
that Cain knew his wife, she conceived 
and a son was born. 

Let the nations of the earth keep silent, 
and not find fault with Grod on account of 
the troubles of this earth. The race of 
man is the cause of the troubles of this 
world, except earthquakes and the winds 
of this earth. All physical disease has 
been handed down from generation to gen- 
eration until the present time. Who is to 
blame? The ones that violated nature's 
law, not God. All hereditary disease of 
the mind came from our ancestors by not 
obeying the law. Is God to blame ? No. 



60 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

Do we understand the magnitude of these 
diseases of body and mind, and the de- 
struction that follows their path; the very 
cause that creates a hell in homes that 
once had heaven for their guest, but now 
turned into a hell for disobeying nature's 
law 7 . This disease of the body and mind 
has separated many a husband and wife, 
and caused children to mourn on account 
of it. This disease that came through dis- 
obedience has caused war after w r ar, and 
nation after nation has been ruined through 
the effect of a broken law. All family 
quarrels and disturbances in society can 
be traced to this disease caused by diso- 
bedience. Who is to blame for this ? Man, 
and not God. God has a remedy that 
grow r s from the earth, that will cure any 
disease that man ever had, or ever will 
have. But remember, God has put man 
on this earth to study them out. Man 
was made an active being, and if he would 
have wisdom, he must seek for it, that he 
might be able to master and understand 
the nature of the ingredients of the earth. 
Just as long as the race live in idleness 
and idolatry and do not seek for that wis- 



What is Man ? 61 

dom which would develop man to under- 
stand the nature of the law that governs 
the conception of offspring, we will have 
dwarfs born to us through disobedience to 
law, and likewise diseased offspring, physi- 
cal and mental, with crime generated 
through a broken law, born into this beau- 
tiful world, as disturbers in the society 
they live in. Such in the past ages and in 
the present age have been the means of 
drenching this earth with human blood. Oh, 
vain man of the nineteenth century \ How 
much longer will you be contented in this 
condition of lethargy and sleep ? Oh, man 
of death, awake from your condition, seek 
wisdom which is knowledge, which will be 
the means of giving you a resurrection upon 
high plane of thought and purity, which 
will be the means of cultivating a religion 
and a civilization that God wall accept and 
bless and honor. Has the Day of Grace 
gone by for the reformation of man while 
in this Gentile age ? It has. The prophecy 
in Scripture informs us that the race will 
grow^ worse and worse in the latter days of 
the Gentile world, that we are now passing 
through, until the millennial age comes in. 



62 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

Then the great reformation of the world 
will begin. In that age all false religions 
and dogmas and isms will go down into 
their grave, never to be resurrected. Then 
the simple religion that Jesns Christ estab- 
lished on this earth, over eighteen hundred 
years ago, will be exalted by the nations of 
the earth, and in the dignity of its power 
will proclaim to the world that truth must 
be supreme. Then will the ignorance of 
the nations pass away like the dew in the 
morning of a bright sun. Integrity and 
purity of truth aa^II be the standard of the 
age, and under the banner of the spiritual 
flag, the world will be reformed, and Jesus, 
our elder brother, will see of the travail of 
His soul and be satisfied. 



CHAPTER IV. 



CHRIST S MISSION ON EARTH. 



THE question to be considered is, what 
did the mission of Jesus Christ con- 
sist according to Scripture \ Is the vicar- 
ious atonement true, as advocated by most 
of the religious institutions of this and the 
ages past ? If holy writ is reliable, then 
it is not true; the interpretation and appli- 
cation of this question in Scripture will not 
justify the principle involved in it as a 
truth. It is absurd in its character and an 
imposition upon the intelligence of this en- 
lightened age of thought and progression. 
It is blasphemy against an infinite God, 
and destroys that noble attribute— justice, 
which belongs to God alone. The justice 
of God is infinite in character, and the 
principle involved in that attribute of the 
supreme cannot disgrace its character, by 
having an innocent man without sin, suffer 
for the sins of another, and let the sinner 
go free without being punished for sins 



64 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

committed before or after conversion, is in 
direct opposition with the immutable law 
of cause and effect. 

Christ's mission on earth was to abolish 
all the law contained in the Jewish Cove- 
nant, except the Ten Commandments, and 
to destroy the force and power of the Jew- 
ish Covenant, which contained types and 
shadows of the present covenant of the New 
Testament, Jesus Christ the antetype ; and 
to redeem the Jews as a nation from the 
power and curse of that law, that they 
might receive the adoption of sons under 
the constitution of the present covenant. 
According to Scripture, Christ had the 
same mission as the prophets, and that was 
to bring the Jews back to their law, the Ten 
Commandments, from which they had wan- 
dered and which they had covered up with 
their tradition, supposing that they could 
atone for their sins or reconcile God to their 
conduct by a faithful adherance to their 
sacrifices and rituals without repentance 
and abandonment of sin. The shedding 
of the blood of Christ was to abolish the 
Levitical priesthood, and tear down the 
middle Avail of partition between the Jew 



Christ \s Mission on Earth. 65 

and Gentile, and unite them together with 
the race as one, under the spiritual cove- 
nant of Jesus Christ. 

As we proceed with this question we 
shall be able to understand what is meant 

bv the blood of Christ. First we consider 

t/ 

the two covenants. The first covenant that 
God made with the Jew^s, according to 
Scripture, was imperfect. Heb.vii. 19. "For 
the law made nothing perfect/ 1 that is, the 
first covenant outside the Ten Command- 
ments. Heb. viii. 7. ' 'For if that first cove- 
nant had been faultless, then should no 
place have been sought for the second. " 
Heb. ix. 9. Here we learn ' 'that could not 
make him that did the service perfect, as 
pertaining to the conscience/ 1 Verse 10. 
' 'Which stood only in meats and drinks, and 
divers washings and carnal ordinances im- 
posed on them until the time of reforma- 
tion. " Galatians iii. 19. ' 'Wherefore then 
serveth the law ? It was added because of 
transgression. 1? Verse 24. ' 'The law was our 
school-master to bring us unto Christ, " that 
is under the second covenant. So Scrip- 
tures teach us that the ordinances just men- 
tioned above were incorporated with the 



H6 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

first covenant, to be strictly observed in the 
Ten Commandments. There was no spir- 
itual life in the law of ordinances, only in 
the Ten Commandments. But the Jews 
failed to obey the Ten Commandments as 
commanded by God in the first covenant, 
but were very obedient of the ritual part, 
the law of ordinances, which is the letter. 
And so we find the Christian world to-day, 
strict, very strict to obey the ordinance that 
belong to their church and faith, but 
neglectful in obedience to the Command- 
ments of Jesus Christ, as laid down in the 
New Testament, and while obeying the let- 
ter of the law have, under the New Testa- 
ment, as did the Jews ander the old dispen- 
sation — gone astray. Is it a wonder that 
crime is on the increase throughout the 
length and breath of our land, in view of 
the doctrine of vicarious atonement as 
preached from our pulpits. Does it not give 
men license to live in sin, to worship at mam- 
mon's shrine, and at the last, the eleventh 
hour, perchance, accept the doctrine of 
vicarious atonement, which means ex- 
emption from punishment. Is the dignity 
that robes that noble attribute — justice — 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 67 

belongs to God, to be thus trampled in the 
dust, and the word which declares that sin 
cannot go unpunished, to become as naught, 
while the sinner reaps the same reward, as 
the well spent life, the life lived in obedi- 
ence to the Divine law \ The 8th, 9th and 
10 th chapters of Hebrews plainly teach us 
that the law of ordinances contained in the 
first covenant was imperfect, and was 
added because of man's transgressions, and 
imposed upon them until the time of refor- 
mation. That is, when Christ came and 
established the second covevant. We shall 
now be able to understand what is meant 
by the blood of the Jewish covenant. 

When the Jews entered into covenant 
with God at Mount Sinai, to keep the com- 
mandments, a sacrifice w^as offered, and the 
blood of the sacrifice was sprinkled upon 
the people as a sign that, if necessary, they 
would lay dow r n their lives in carrying out 
the commandments, and by this ceremony 
their sins were said to be washed out or 
cleansed away. This institution became a 
permanent one, the ceremonies of which 
were performed on the first day of every new 
year, after that, which was called the Great 



68 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

Day of Atonement, when the sins of the 
people were said to be cleansed by the blood 
of the sacrifice which was sprinkled upon 
them on that occasion, and which was said 
to cleanse them from their sins for the past 
year, and by which they renewed their 
covenant for another year and had right- 
ousness imputed to them for that time. 
Heb. x. ' c For it is not possible that the blood 
of bulls and of goats should take away 
sins. " ; Tn burnt offerings and sacrifices for 
sin thou hast had no pleasure. 1 ' There was 
no element in the constitution of the Jewish 
covenant to take away the sins from man. 
Nothing but the blood of Jesus Christ, the 
spotless sacrifice, can take away the sins of 
man, and destroy spiritual death, the last 
enemy. The Jewish covenant was the let- 
ter, death, and operated upon the Jews as 
a schoolmaster until the time of reforma- 
tion, but will not reform the Jews as a na- 
tion until the end of the Gentile world, 
then all Israel shall be saved. Romans xi. 
26, 27: 4t For this is my covenant unto 
them, when I shall take away their sins." 
What sins ? The sin of worship to God 
under the old covenant as a nation. This 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 69 

covenant wa^ the letter, death and hell. 
This suffered one death when Jesus was 
nailed to the cross, and said in giv- 
ing up the ghost, kw It is finished/ 1 This 
covenant will have no more power over the 
Jews as a nation, when the fullness of the 
Gentiles is accomplished at the end of this 
Gentile world, when the Jews as a na- 
tion will forsake their old covenant, 
and accept the gospel of Jesus Christ, ac- 
cording to the constitution of the present 
covenant; then the force and power of that 
covenant over the Jews will have its eter- 
nal destruction, through the power and 
spirit incorporated into the new covenant. 
We now begin to understand the principle 
involved in the mission of Christ on this 
earth ; he did not come as a substitute, 
only as a propitiation. 1 John ii. <i : c ' And 
he is the propitiation for our sins, and not 
for ours only, but also for the sins of the 
world." That is broad; it takes in the en- 
tire race. Jesus Christ was propitious. 
Propitiate, to conciliate, to gain by kind- 
ness, to atone. What does atone mean ? 
To expiate, to make satisfaction, to agree, 
to reconcile. This is the key to unlock the 



70 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

mystery of Christ's mission upon this earth. 
The destiny of the race was inclosed in the 
blood of Jesus Christ. When this blood 
was shed, victory over death, hell and the 
grave was accomplished. The great pro- 
phet Paul says satisfaction is made, God 
in Jesus Christ reconciling the race to him- 
self through the new birth, and punish- 
ment for sin limited for the good of man. 

Question. But the blood of the sacri- 
fices under the old law was actually sprin- 
kled upon the people upon their taking 
the covenant; now how is it that the blood 
of Christ is not sprinkled upon his disci- 
ples? 

Answer. By assuming that it was done. 

Question. You meant to say that it was 
symbolical ? 

Answer. I mean that under the old law 
it was symbolical, but under the new it is 
a figure of speech drawn from the symbol- 
ical act, implying the assumption upon 
ourselves of self-sacrifice, such as Christ 
made of himself for the benefit of the 
world. 

Question. But he might not be called 
upon to sacrifice his life as Jesus did his \ 



Chrisfs Mission on Earth. 71 

Answer. Well, if not called upon to do 
so, he would be sealed unto eternal life by 
the spirit. If called upon to do so, he 
would seal his covenant with his blood. 
So you now see the connection between the 
words blood and spirit. 

Question. I see they virtually mean the 
same thing ? 

Answer. We will stop here for a single 
moment to consider a point which we have 
invariably insisted upon whenever a vica- 
rious atonement is argued out before us. 
We are told that the blood of Christ is 
necessary to purge away the effect of sin 
from the heart, even from that of a par- 
doned sinner. 

We would respectfully inquire where is 
the authority for this ? Is there any au- 
thority in the Bible to prove that the blood 
of Christ will purge away the effect of sin 
from the heart and violate an immutable law 
of God, by disrobing the justice and equity 
of God of its purity of principle, which in- 
forms us in Scripture that, whatsoever a 
man soweth that shall he also reap. And 
the principle involved in this question is 
the underlying element, and foremost in 



72 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible, 

Scripture for the development of man; and 
in this consideration, if the reaping, which 
is punishment for sin, did not begin its 
operation upon the heart soon after the sin 
committed, then the infinite purpose of 
God would be a failure in reproof to man, 
and lose its power upon the heart to repent. 

The mission of Jesus Christ upon this 
earth was not to exempt man from punish- 
ment due sin. If so, it would be in col- 
lision with the principle of justice and 
equity, and destroy the foundation of the 
New Covenant. Christ's mission was to re- 
deem the entire race from spiritual death, 
and the law of the New Testament has laid 
out but one way for the race to be re- 
deemed, that is through obedience to the 
law, and punishment for disobedience. 
That, and that alone, sums up the case. 

Question. What is spiritual death ? 

Answer. Spiritual death, according to 
Scripture, came from the fall of Adam, and 
every human being ever born upon this 
earth, except Jesus Christ, has been 
poisoned with the sting of this death. Ac- 
cording to the eternal purpose of God, God 
will through Christ redeem the race from 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 73 

this death to Himself, that God might be 
all and in all. This is the mission of Christ, 
the meditator between God and man. 

Question. Is there everything in the 
New Testament which directly contradicts 
the doctrine of substitution ? 

Answer. We will suppose a case. We 
will suppose that after taking an innocent 
man and executing him for a guilty one, 
the government should then turn round 
and taking the guilty one should execute 
him also. What sort of a government 
would that be ? It is unnecessary to an. 
swer. Suppose that after Christ had laid 
down His life for all men, that all men 
should be required to lay down their lives 
also, what sort of a substitution would 
that be ? 

Question. Do you mean to say that we 
are commanded anywhere in the Bible to 
lay down our lives as Jesus did His ? 

Answer. The apostle Paul, in Rom. xii, 
1, gives an answer to the question; he says: 
' ' I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the 
mercies of God, that ye present your bodies 
a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto 
God, which is your reasonable service." 



74 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

This text of itself is sufficient to annul the 
doctrine of substitution. 

1 Johniii. 16. tl Hereby perceive we the 
love of Christ, because He laid down His 
life for us, and we ought to lay down our 
lives for the brethren. " 

This needs no comment, we must follow 
the example of Christ. If Jesus exhibited 
love to us we should exhibit love to Him. 
He fellowshiped our affections and we 
should fellowship His, so that His afflictions 
were not vicarious, but common to all of us. 

Question. Please define the meaning of 
the word substitute more clearly, that I 
may understand the nature of it in full. 

Answer. I will give the interpretation 
of that word, as advocated by some of our 
leading religious institutions of the present 
age. They tell the world that Jesus Christ 
came upon earth as a substitute, to suffer 
and die instead of the sinner. They claim 
that sin is infinite in nature, and unless 
pardoned by God before man passes into 
another existence, he will be doomed to 
eternal misery. They claim that a man can 
sin until he is seventy years old, and rob 
the widow and the orphan and take their 



Christ 8 Mission on Earth. 75 

homes through dishonesty, and turn them 
in the street to become paupers and die in 
a poorhouse, and commit all manner of sins 
damnable in character, sufficient to cause 
God Himself to blush, and then this 
miserable human fiend of the earth at that 
age, with one foot in the grave and the 
other out, becomes converted and receives 
the new birth, and through this condition 
Christ steps in as a substitute and exempts 
this man from punishment due sin com- 
mitted by this man through life. They 
tell us that Jesus suffered on the cross as a 
substitute for all the sins committed by this 
man, because he has been converted and 
intends now to be a good man the balance 
of his life. Under this condition this man 
goes free from being punished, slides into 
heaven and becomes a guest of Grod and the 
holy angels, while perchance the poor 
widow, through the means of this man, 
dies in a poorhouse, uncoverted and cast 
into an eternal hell to be a companion of 
devils throughout all eternity. I trust 
you now understand the meaning of the 
word substitute. 

Question. Please give me the nature of 



76 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

the punishment due sin, and where it takes 
place, and when ? 

Answer. Sin, according to Scripture, is 
a violation of law, the intent of the soul, 
and according to the magnitute of the sin 
committed and the injury it has done, so will 
the magnitute of the effect of that sin be in 
the punishment, which is in harmony with 
the infinite justice and equity of God, har- 
monizing with the immutable law of cause 
and effect, and as the intent of sin which 
issues from the soul, gives it the location 
through the principle of divine law. We 
now have the location where punishment 
takes place; this makes the soul a location 
for a hell under conditions. We now find 
a located hell in the soul of man, generated 
through his own conduct and behavior. 

Hell is a figurative word, meaning mis- 
ery and remorse, and condemnation in the 
soul, and at the same time conscious of the 
condition. This is punishment for sin, 
and the location for hell is in the soul of 
man. I trust you now understand the na- 
ture of punishment, and where, and I will 
now give when. Before I do so I will suppose 
a case. Suppose we take an instrument 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 77 

and electrify it with electricity; you take 
hold of that instrument with your hand, 
would you feel the effect of it immediately, 
or would it defer the effect until you passed 
into the spirit world, and then take ef- 
fect ? Protestant theology informs us that 
it takes place in the spirit world, as far as 
the effect of sin and the punishment for 
sin. The present Protestant theology 
advocates that God defers punishment in 
this life, and gives it to them as soon as they 
pass into an immortal existence; then they 
tell us that God with revenge says to the 
wicked, tc Depart from me, ye accursed, 
into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil 
and his angels. " I trust you begin to un- 
derstand the difference between the hell 
and punishment that the Scriptures teach 
and that which some of our popular lead- 
ing religious institutions teach in the 
midst of the development of thought in 
the nineteenth century. Hell is a condi- 
tion in the soul, the soul being the loca- 
tion. The effect of sin, which is punish- 
ment, begins immediately or soon after in 
the soul, until justice is satisfied; then it 
ends; hell as a condition becomes null and 



78 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible, 

void, and the disobedient child of God be- 
comes purged from the effects of evil and 
its works upon the soul, which is spiritual 
death. This is the process that God takes 
to cleanse the soul, through punishment 
by the operation of the Spirit of God. 
God punishes the sinner to reprove him, 
and the element to cause him to think, 
and not sin again. I trust you now begin 
to understand the nature and mission of 
Jesus Christ upon this earth. What would 
become of man at death if Jesus Christ 
had not died and shed his blood ? Man in 
that condition never would have an 
immortal existence as an entity beyond the 
grave, if man did exist as a conscious en- 
tity after death. In case Jesus Christ had 
not died, then man as an entity would be 
immortal, and eternal misery would be the 
effect of Adam's fall. If man as an entity 
be immortal, then eternal misery is true; 
sin committed by man in that condition 
would be infinite in character, for immor- 
tality is a principle of life in the Godhead 
as an entity. Scripture justifies this state- 
ment, that God is the only entity in the 
universe that is immortal. Man is a finite 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 79 

entity; hits immortal existence beyond the 
grave is the gift of God. Man is not self- 
existing, which is proof that man is not 
immortal. If man is immortal, it makes 
him self-existing, and can exist without the 
aid of God, which makes Paul out a fraud, 
and his writings a libel. Paul declares 
that man L ' lives, moves, and has his be- 
ing" in God, who only hath immortality. 

Heb. ix, 15: tc And for this cause he is 
the mediator of the new testament, that 
by means of death for the redemption of 
the transgressions that were under the first 
testament, " which was the Jewish covenant. 
Here is one case that informs us what is 
meant by the blood of Christ. Through 
his blood the Levitical priesthood of Aaron 
was abolished, and the wall between the 
Jew and Gentile torn down, and the Jews 
as a nation made free from the law of ordi- 
nances contained in their covenant — the 
letter, death, and not life, and to be called 
the sons of God if they obeyed the law in- 
corporated in the New Covenant, which 
was spiritual life, and free from the curse 
and power of their law; for it was the 
blood of Christ that nailed it to the cross 



80 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

forever. The principle involved in the 
blood was to cement the Jew and Gentile 
together as one, under the direction of the 
present covenant, and bring them back from 
the curse of their law, and their backslid - 
ings, to obey the Ten Commandments, 
which are still in force in a condensed 
form in the new covenant. Christ came 
to fulfill the law; he had the law in his 
heart, which is the requirement of the cov- 
enant, and which he obeyed. He came to 
do God's will and keep his commandments. 
Christ does speak of an atonement, which, 
if universally carried out, would be a bless- 
ing to mankind. This atonement is as fol- 
lows: 

Matt. v. 23. " Therefore, if thou bring 
thy gift to the altar, and there remember- 
est that thy brother hath aught against 
thee, leave there thy gift before the altar, 
and go thy way, first be reconciled to thy 
brother, then come and offer thy gift." 
First atone with thy brother, be at peace 
with him; when reconciled to him, then 
come and be reconciled to God. This is a 
principle which underlies the Levitical 
sacrifices, transferred to the Christian sys- 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 81 

tern. If as much eloquence and energy 
had been expended in enforcing this kind 
of an atonement as has been that of a vica- 
rious one, the world would have been 
blessed indeed. How many bloody wars 
between nations, and disgraceful quarrels 
between individuals might have been pre- 
vented, and hearts aching with sadness 
and sorrow been reconciled and happy. A 
true atonement is to obey the principles of 
the commandments which are in the nat- 
ural heart, revealed by an angel on mount 
Sinai, and simply an indorsement and for- 
mulation of its instincts; but its object 
was to make known the blessings and pen- 
alties which are connected with obedience 
and disobedience to them. 

Christianity is founded on the law and 
prophets, and any interpretation of Scrip- 
ture which conflicts with these must neces- 
sarily be erroneous, and at war with the 
principles of the new covenant. They 
must be interpreted as to harmonize with 
the above principle, otherwise such inter- 
pretation is of no authority. The Gentiles 
and Jews of Ephesus had been brought 
nigh or reconciled to each other through 



82 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible, 

the death of Christ, or through his blood, 
which he shed in his efforts to abolish the 
law of commandments contained in ordi- 
nances which stood in the way of their 
union or reconciliation. (Compare Eph. ii. 
14, 16.) "For he is our peace, who hath 
made both one, and hath broken down the 
middle wall of partition between us, and 
that he might reconcile both (that is Jew 
and Gentile) unto God in one body by the 
cross; having slain the enmity thereby. 77 
Verse 18: "For through him (that is 
through the blood ) we both have access by 
one spirit unto the Father.' 7 This is posi- 
tive proof what is meant by the blood of 
Christ and his mission. It was to abolish the 
entire Jewish covenant, except the ten com- 
mandments, and put in its place the new 
covenant, which contained life, spiritual 
in its character, to unite the race together 
as one, and destroy evil and its works, and 
be productive in the final consummation of 
happiness and righteousness for all. We 
conclude, therefore, that Christ died for 
all, but not as a substitute; the sacrifices 
of the law were a propitiation only in case 
of obedience to the Ten Commandments, 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 83 

which the Jews were in duty bound to obey 
according to the letter of their law. If not 
obeyed, then to be punished, limited in 
duration, for their good. The sacrifice of 
Christ in this dispensation is a propitiation 
only in case of obedience to the two com- 
mandments found in Matt. xxii. 37-40. 
The principle in the constitution of the 
new covenant is condensed in these two 
commandments; the principle in the blood 
of Christ cannot cleanse the soul from the 
effect of sin only through punishment. 
The law in the gospel dispensation pro- 
claims to the world that whatsoever a man 
soweth, he shall reap, and be punished ac- 
cording to the deeds done in the body. 
This law is final. The vicarious doctrine 
proclaims to the world that man can sow to 
the flesh, which is corruption, until the 
eleventh hour, then get converted through 
the blood of Christ, and not reap the ef- 
fect of what man sowed, and make Scrip- 
ture out a libel, and cheat justice and rob 
it of that infinite principle, the glory, the 
dignity that crowns the Godhead. 

Calvinism teaches that sin is an offense 
against God simply, and upon that basis 



84 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

grounds a piece of terrible logic. It tells 
us that as God is an infinite being, a sin 
committed against him is infinite in degree, 
and requires a punishment infinite in du- 
ration, or an atonement made by an infi- 
nite being; that is, God himself. This 
phantom of the imagination disappears in 
the light of Scripture. This doctrine is 
still advocated by some of our Christian 
denominations, but the intellect of this 
enlightened age is pondering over this 
weighty question, and many of our most 
intelligent, deep, thoughtful prayerful Bi- 
ble students repudiate this Calvinistic doc- 
trine as blasphemous against the divine at- 
tributes of a just and holy God. It is time 
we should abandon these intellectual mon- 
strosities of a past age, and accept only 
the simplicity of the Bible teachings incor- 
porated into the New Covenant. The truth 
is, sin is measured by the amount of in- 
jury we do to our fellow beings; through 
the justice of God we are punished accord- 
ingly, for our good, as finite beings. 

Is it possible for man to commit an in- 
finite sin, and harmonize with the govern- 
ment of God ? It is not. It is impossible for 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 85 

finite man to commit an infinite sin, as he 
is a finite entity, and any sin committed by 
man is finite in nature, and must be pun- 
ished accordingly, limited in duration for 
the benefit of the individual to harmonize 
with justice and equity. 

Can man sin against God ? There is no 
Scripture to justify the statement that man 
can. God is supreme, the creator of the 
universe, independent in His infinite na- 
ture, beyond the possibility of man doing 
anything to benefit or injure God. God is 
perfection. The violation of any law in 
the universe cannot injure or benefit God; 
if it could, it would destroy the infinite 
perfection of God. If man could sin against 
God and injure Him, it would be a contin- 
ual hell for God to enjoy, as millions of 
souls are cursing God every day. There is 
not a law in the universe that will move 
God from His infinite purpose. The trouble 
with this vicarious doctrine and its follow- 
ers is this, they draw down the standard of 
God on a level with the standard of man. 
But in the light of this age of thought this 
vicarious doctrine will soon disappear and 
hide its head in shame forever. 



86 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

Was Jesus Christ a human entity, and a 
divine entity united together as one entity ? 
If this be true, then Jesus Christ is God 
and man. The Scriptures do not justify the 
statement. 2 Cor. v. 19. to wit: That God 
was in Christ reconciling the world unto 
Himself, did not make Christ divine. Christ 
was born of a woman, with a body and soul, 
finite in character, an entity outside of God, 
He was made a chosen vessel, a special son, 
for a special mission for God, who only is 
divine, to operate in and through Him as 
a meditator, to give to the world the New 
Covenant which contained spiritual life for 
the race, and brought immortality to light 
through this covenant, that God might 
reconcile the world unto himself and abol- 
ish the Jewish covenant of ordinances and 
sacrifices, and teach man the true spiritual 
religion contained in the present covenant, 
which alone brings happiness to man, if 
obedient to the law contained in it. It was 
Jesus as a finite man that suffered upon the 
cross, and while in the agony of death he 
speaks from His soul and says: "- My God ! 
My God! Why hast Thou' forsaken Me." 
This is evidence that God had withdrawn 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 87 

from Him in that hour, or Jesus would never 
have made that plea, and hence the sacrifice 
was not divine. 1 Cor. xv. 3. * iC Christ died 
for our sins/ 1 What is their interpretation 
of this word, according to Scripture ? The 
21st and 2 2d verses of the same chapter will 
give light on this subject : tl By man came 
death, by man came also the resurrection 
of the dead, for as in Adam all die, even 
so in Christ shall all be made alive. 11 The 
above evidence confirms one thing, that 
whatever an innocent race lost through 
Adam will be restored back to the race as 
a whole, by and through Jesus Christ, the 
second Adam. Scripture teaches that Christ 
shed His blood to redeem the race from sin, 
which was death, and through His blood 
came the resurrection of the dead, that is 
the restitution of the race from the death 
of sin, that Adam brought into the world, 
and to redeem the Jews from the curse of 
their law and redeem the sinner through 
punishment due sin, which is spiritual 
death generated through the fall of Adam. 
This is the principle involved in the blood 
of Christ, to redeem the entire race in the 
condition Adam was before he fell. This 



88 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

death is now abolished. 2 Tim. i. 10. By 
whom the race has now received the atone- 
ment, as found in Romans v. 11. Atone- 
ment and reconciliation mean one thing. 
2 Cor. v. 18. Lk And all things are of God, 
who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus 
Christ, and hath given to us the ministry 
of reconciliation. " In the 18th verse w^e are 
informed all things are of God. This state- 
ment is broad, it takes in the universe. 
Why? Because all things are subject to 
His power and control, who hath reconciled 
us, the race, to Himself by Jesus Christ. 
How ? Through His blood. The shedding 
of His blood and the sacrifice of His body, 
was the principle of life, to reconcile and 
make restitution for the race. Justice de- 
manded this through the promise God 
made in the garden, that the seed of the 
woman should bruise the serpent's head. 
This was the mission of Jesus Cbrist upon 
the earth. The head of the serpent was 
bruised when Christ was upon the cross 
and said to the world, 4t It is finished," 
and gave up the ghost, his spirit, upon this 
cross. Jesus w^as made to be sin for us. 
2 Cor. v. 21. How? Galatians iii. 13. 



Christ** Mission on Earth. 89 

Because Christ redeemed us, the race of 
man. from the curse of the law, being 
made a curse for us, and bare our sins in 
His body on the tree," as it reads in 1 Peter 
ii. 24. There is no provision made in this 
sacrifice for man to escape punishment for 
sin committed by man. The mission of 
Jesus Christ was not for this jrarpose. He 
shed His blocd for Adam's transgression, 
the sin that has stung an innocent race. 
This sin He bore in His body, and was made 
sin for us. and by it it redeemed the race 
from the curse of that sin. The interpre- 
tation and application of some of our re- 
ligious institutions give the above Scripture 
just considered, another interpretation 
as follows: They claim the fall of Adam 
was an infinite sin, and it took an infinite 
sacrifice to satisfy the justice of God. Upon 
this the doctrine of a vicarious atonement 
was built. If the fall of Adam was an infinite 
sin then Adam as an entity was infinite in 
nature, equal with God. If this Avas the 
case, then Adam could not fall from that 
condition : infinite principle is perf ection. 
Was Adam made a perfect being I If true, 
God made it impossible for Adam to fall, 



90 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible, 

but he fell. This is evidence in the word 
of God, that Adam was imperfect in the 
principle of His entity, but innocent and 
good, and knew no sin. Does that make 
Adam infinite and immortal in spirit ? If 
this be true, then Adam never had a cre- 
ation as an entity. Any entity in this uni- 
verse that is immortal is self-existing, and 
never had a creation, eternal in its nature. 
Immortality belongs to God alone, and 
everything that lives in the universe as an 
entity, nurses from the breast of God, to 
sustain life as an entity. 1 Tim. vi. 16. 
1 L God who only hath immortality, dwelling 
in the light which no man can approach 
unto, whom no man hath seen, nor can see. '•' 
And in addition, the mission of Christ 
on earth was to establish the church in 
harmony with the constitution of the New 
Covenant. He established the church as 
directed by the Father. tc Jesus said, I can 
do nothing only as the Father reveals it to 
me, " St. John xiv. 10. c ' But the Father 
that dwelleth in Me doeth the works. " St. 
John v. 30. tl I can of Mine one own self 
do nothing, I seek not Mine own will, but 
the will of the Father which hath sent Me. " 



Christ' 1 s Mission on Earth. 91 

Verse 19th. t4 The Son can do nothing of 
Himself." St. John ix. 4. tc I must 
work the works of Him that sent Me. 11 
This evidence is positive proof that Jesus 
Christ as an entity was not God, neither 
infinite, but finite as an entity, a spirit 
who claims in this word that he can do 
nothing of himself, neither exist of himself, 
but helpless as a child on the bosom of its 
mother. 

Oh, blindness of the nineteenth century ! 
Awake from your sleep. Think for your- 
self in this age of thought, developed on a 
plane of wisdom and knowledge that God 
is waiting to give when man seeks for it. 
Arise from the cradle of ignorance, that 
the world has been rocked in for ages past. 
Then will the darkness of this vicarious 
atonement disappear forever, and the light 
and life, the image of God, will take its 
place in the souls of men. 



CHAPTER V. 



CHRIST S MISSION ON EARTH. 



WHEN Calvinism tells us we must have no 
merits of our own, it utters a falsehood 
and blasphemes the name of God. God 
saves none who do not obey Him, and obed- 
ience is meritorious. God grants through 
His law reconciliation to man for sin on 
repentance, and repentance must be con- 
firmed by personal behavior, or else it 
amounts to nothing, and this is personal 
righteousness, and is meritorious and re- 
ceives a reward. 

The mission of Jesus Christ and the shed- 
ding of His blood was to give to the race 
an immortal existence beyond the grave 
through God, and as a gift. This existence 
was lost to the race when Adam fell. But 
the new spiritual birth was not a gift, only 
on condition that man must get it through 
obedience to the law, through his own merit 
by good behavior, which would as an effect 
produce a reward. When religious insti- 



Chrisfs Mission on Earth. 93 

tutions assert that Christ died as a substi- 
tute for man, to wipe out the punishment 
for sin committed before the conversion of 
a person, is a falsehood and a libel against 
God. To do so, it would be a disgrace to 
justice, and encourage man to continue on 
to sin, otherwise it serves as an element to 
develop in man a care lest he sin. 

Calvinism is a bundle of inconsisten- 
cies. It ignores morality and the law of 
God, and thus permits this antagonism be- 
tween good and evil to go uncorrected and 
so involves the whole moral world in con- 
fusion. This pernicious system is only a 
phase of Hindooism, which was imported 
from the banks of the Ganges into the old 
city of Ur, and through Chaldea, and 
thence among the Canaanites, where they 
came in contact with these people, were se- 
duced into idolatry, and became at times 
more or less infected with its errors. The 
entire system had its root in the Hindoo 
dogma, that matter is evil. Total de- 
pravity has its source in this, as espoused 
by Calvinism. God who is sovereign, is a 
principle which is constantly asserted 
throughout the Bible. It extends even 



94 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

to the minutest details of life. Does 
Jehovah's sovereignty extend over the ma- 
terial and historical worlds as well as over 
the human heart ? Does it engineer and 
control every force and law in nature ? If 
not, there is no God, If it does, what is 
God doing ? What is His purpose ? Has 
God any purpose becoming a beneficent 
God? Is it only to create a world, fill it 
with fascinating delights, then peopling it 
with beings possessed of organisms, sus- 
ceptable of enjoying these delights, and 
then tantalizing and disappointing them, 
converting His creation into an arena of 
wars, bloodshed and cruelty ? Is this all 
that there is of it ? Is this all, that in- 
finite power, wisdom and goodness can ac- 
complish in the way of building a world, 
or is there an afterclap ? Is it all misery \ 
Is there no glory ? Is it possible that the 
Gospel as preached in this age of thought, 
is true, that man is a being of total deprav- 
ity, and requires the sacrifice of a God to 
save his soul from the pangs of an eternal 
hell ? And under this condition of deprav- 
ity there will be only a few at the age of 
maturity that will escape this hell, through 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 95 

the so-called sovereignty of an angry God, — 
as some of onr religious institutions advo- 
cate in the past and present age. Examine 
Scripture and learn what the God of the 
universe says, who loved the race so dearly 
that He gave the spotless body of Christ as 
a sacrifice. The law called for the blood of a 
spotless human body as a sacrifice, finite and 
not infinite, to redeem and bring a restitu- 
tion of the world back to God, from whence 
it fell. This world that is now shrouded 
with darkness because of the sins of the 
race, will that darkness forever remain 
over the souls that pass into spirit life un- 
converted? Is this mortal existence the end 
of redemption for man ? If so, where shall 
we find the mercy of a loving God, who 
made all things after His own counsel, 
supreme in character, impossible to make 
a mistake ? Scriptures teach us that re- 
demption will never end until the last 
enemy shall be destroyed. This enemy is 
the effect of sin in the soul of man, the ele- 
ment that causes unhappiness and misery ; 
this enemy is spiritual death. The inter- 
pretation of spiritual death is the unhappi- 
ness and misery in man, brought on the 



96 Dagevs Interpretation of the Bible. 

race by the fall of Adam. Paul in 1 Cor. 
xv. says this is law, that spiritual death 
came through Adam and must be destroyed 
by Jesus Christ. This is His mission. If 
eternal misery be true, this spiritual death 
never will be destroyed, and God will make 
a failure, and the devil, a fallen angel, 
that some of the clergy of this age advo- 
cate and believe. But examine the deport- 
ment of the character of some clergymen. 
The hand from the spiritual world would 
be seen writing on the walls of their pro- 
fession, L " You are weighed in the balances 
and are found wanting. 11 

Is the immaculate conception of Jesus 
Christ true and in harmony with the Scrip- 
tures ? It is true. The destiny of man 
rested upon the principle involved in the 
nature of that conception. The blood of 
that body would have been null and void, 
in the conception from the seed of man. 

St. Luke i. 31. ct And behold thou shalt 
conceive in thy womb and bring forth a 
son and shalt call his name Jesus/' 

Verse 34. ll Then said Mary unto the 
angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not 
a mail. 1 ' 



Christ's Minion on Earth. 97 

Verse 35. ^ And the angel answered 
and said unto her, the Holy Ghost shall 
come upon thee and the power of the high- 
est shall overshadow thee, therefore also 
that holy thing which shall be born of thee 
shall be called the Son of God. M 

God did interpose and bring into exist- 
ence this spotless body as stated above, 
through an unknown law to man. Was it 
necessary that this body should be spotless 
in nature to carry out the purpose of God ? 
The law demanded it as a claim. It was 
the only saving link in the chain of evi- 
dence in regard to this question, and the 
saving principle incorporated into the con- 
stitution of the new covenant. 

There was no principle in the Jewish 
covenant that could give man spiritual life 
and an immortal existence beyond the 
grave. The Jewish covenant was the let- 
ter and not the spirit; all the sacrifices of- 
fered under that covenant were imperfect, 
being animals. This was to be abolished 
through the power of the new covenant, 
and the blood that sealed the new covenant 
w r as to be shed from a spotless body, to give 
spiritual life to man and redeem the race, 



98 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

and give them an immortal existence. This 
was the mission of Christ upon this earth. 
Was this body divine \ It was not. It 
was a human body, subject to decay and 
dust. Was the spirit divine ? It was not. 
It moved and had a being through God, 
and could not exist a moment without the 
aid of God. This evidence is from the 
mouth of Jesus Christ himself. St. John 
v. 19. Jesus says in this verse, that He 
can do nothing of Himself, thereby ac- 
knowledging that He is helpless without 
God, and finite as an entity. He was a 
medium or mediatator between God and 
man. God worked in and through Jesus 
Christ to reconcile the world to himself. 
This was the way that God manifested 
Himself in the flesh. 

Galatians iv. 4. c ' And when the full- 
ness of the time was come, God sent forth 
His son, made of a woman, made under the 
law." 

The principle of the law that governs 
Scripture teaches us that God did not send 
His son before He was made of a woman, 
and born as an entity. The son could not 
be sent forth before he was made of a 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 99 

woman. The principle in this text has but 
one meaning, that is, that Jesus, the son, 
did not exist as an entity before He was 
made of a woman. Jesus had a human body 
and soul like other men, except He was 
made without sin, but took on our nature. 
This sacrifice had to be a spotless sacrifice 
to carry out the purpose of God. God in- 
terposed, and through His power and an 
unknown law to man, did create and 
bring forth His son made of a woman. 
The son was not made divine; there is no 
law that God can create an entity and 
make it divine. Divinity had no creation, 
it is eternal. There is but one entity in 
the universe that is divine, that is God, the 
supreme; the principle in the word divine 
never had a creation, it exists of itself. 
God the divine was in Jesus Christ, recon- 
ciling the world to Himself. Scripture is 
plain in its teachings, that Jesus Christ was 
not divine. This is the true interpreta- 
tion as to how God was manifest in the flesh. 
The Scriptures teach us that the power and 
spirit of God was not in the body or bodily 
form, neither was the body the spirit and 
power of God. Herein is contained the 



100 Bagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

truth: God with His unlimited power 
caused the growth and maturity of the 
human body, and it in due time, came 
forth to the world as a finite entity, as a 
man ; but pure, perfect, spotless ; then 
where is the divinity in this man, like unto 
other men, save that he was without sin I 

Throughout the New Testament Jesus 
declares that He is not divine ; powerless 
to fulfill His mission without the Father's 
help. St. John xiv. 10. ct The Father that 
dwelleth in me, He doeth the works. " Jesus 
says it is God working in and through Him; 
reconciling the world unto Himself, that is 
to God. And Paul in his writings declares 
the same truth. 

This commandment that God gave him 
was of God, and thereby gave Jesus the 
power to perform His work or mission? 
Jesus as a human entity did not have the 
power to lay His life doAvn and take it up 
again, for he says in another chapter, that 
He can do nothing of Himself. This proves 
that Jesus was not divine, but the power 
that worked in and through Him was 
divine, was God. 

St. John xi. 22. Martha wanted Jesus 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 101 

to raise to life, her brother, and Martha 
said : --But I know that even now what- 
soever Thou wilt ask of God. God will give 
it to Thee." Martha knew that Jesus was 
a man, and powerless without the Father's 
aid. She had faith that the divine would 
work in and through the son. thus proving 
it was the Father and not the son that was 
divine. 

One more point in this argument is : If 
Christ or Jesus was not of immaculate con- 
ception, but in accordance with the laws of 
human nature, then would he have been 
born under Adam*s transgressions, and 
have been unfit for a sacrifice to redeem the 
race from Adam's transgressions. God was 
obligated through His own law to inter- 
pose and cause this conception through His 
infinite power, which made it immaculate 
in character and free from the power of 
Adam's transgression, and a fit sacrifice to 
redeem the world of man from sin. If this 
had not been the case God would then have 
been obligated to prepare a sacrifice to re- 
deem Jesus from the same curse that Jesus 
redeemed the Jews from. In the consider- 
ation of this question, it does not follow 



102 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

that the vicarious atonement is true; to 
make it as such, God would have to die 
Himself and leave this world to take care 
of itself. The law called for the blood of 
a spotless human body, by which to redeem 
the race from spiritual death, and thereby 
abolish the Jewish covenant. 

Colossians ii. 9, 12. "For in Him," that 
is Jesus, ' c dwelleth all the fullness of the 
Godhead bodily. " There are many who 
are spiritually blind in regard to this ques- 
tion, and this blindness is to be overcome 
by truth. There are people to-day, honest 
and upright in their opinions and convic- 
tions, who have been educated in the 
Christian religion of this age and made to 
believe that God bodily did inherit Jesus 
Christ, which made Jesus divine as an 
entity, and suffered as such, and did with 
His own power rise from the dead. 

Verse 12. c c Buried with Him in baptism, 
wherein also ye are risen with Him through 
the faith of the operation of God, who hath 
raised Him from the dead." 

This evidence in the above text is proof 
how the fullness of God dwelt in Jesus, 
and with what power he was raised from 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 1.03 

the dead; it says the operation of God, that 
is the power of God. 

Acts ii. 32. "This Jesus hath God 
raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. 11 

Jesus had faith in this operation of God 
to raise Him. God gave Him the power to 
lay down His life and to take it again. 
This is the way that the fullness of the 
Godhead dwelt in Jesus. Jesus Christ had 
no power of His own as an entity, to lay 
down His life and take it again, He was as 
helpless as a child. He came here on a 
mission, and filled that mission through 
the power and appreciation of God. For 
Jesus said, "I can do nothing of Myself, 
it is God that worketh in me, and I obey 
as He showeth it to Me. 11 

The next cpiestion for consideration : 
Who was the Saviour of all men, was it 
God or Jesus Christ ? Scriptures declare 
throughout the Bible that God is the Sav- 
iour. Jesus is often called the Saviour, 
but the writer did not mean to infer that 
Jesus was an entity, but as a representa- 
tive for God. The close connection with 
C-iod as His representative is why Jesus is 
so often called the Saviour. This will un- 



104 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

lock the mystery of this question, and sat- 
isfy the world that there is but one Sav- 
iour, God the Supreme. 

1 Tim. ii. 3, 5, 6. "For this is good 
and acceptable in the sight of God, our 
Saviour/'' This is positive and final. 

1 Tim. iv. 10. iL We trust in the living 
God, who is the Saviour of all men." This 
Scripture is not debatable and needs no 
argument. 

1 Tim. ii. 5, 6. Verse 5. "For there 
is one God and one meditator between God 
and man, the man Christ Jesus/' In this 
text there is two positive entities ; God is 
one entity, the man Christ Jesus another. 
This is proof that God is not the son, neither 
the son God. Verse 6. " Who gave Him- 
self a ransom for all, to be testified in due 
time/ 1 Does this make Jesus a Saviour, 
because He gave himself a ransom for all ? 
The ransom was the sacrifice of His body, 
and the shedding of His blood to redeem 
the race from spiritual death. Jesus Christ 
was a representative for God. Christ's 
mission upon this earth was to represent 
God as His agent, to execute the infinte 
purpose of God, by obeying the command- 



Chrisfs Mission on Earth, 105 

ments that God instructed Him to do. In 
this condition He was called the Saviour. 
The common sense and reason of man and 
the principle of law that underlies the uni- 
verse, declares from the principle involved 
in this question, that God is the Saviour 
of all men, as He is the creator of all things, 
and preserver of all things, is by law, the 
Saviour of all things. Saviour means pre- 
server — God the preserver, the redeemer, 
the ransom er. God prepared the body of 
Christ as a sacrifice and a ransom. The 
blood and body of Christ was material mat- 
ter, and must return to dust, from whence it 
came. There was no saving element in the 
matter of this blood and body; it was a me. 
dium, mediator, between God and man, for 
the life principle, which is God, to operate 
through this blood as a Saviour to redeem 
the race in harmony with the infinite pur- 
pose of God; God the Saviour, Christ the 
agent and instrument. 

Titus i. 3, 4. Verse 3. ' 'According to the 
commandment of God our Saviour; 1 ' in this 
verse God is our Saviour. Verse 4. 4i From 
God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ 
our Saviour." Paul says in this verse, that 



106 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

grace, mercy and peace, from God the Fa- 
ther and the Lord Jesus Christ our Saviour. 
Paul means to be understood that grace, 
mercy and peace, which is God, is our 
Saviour, and not Christ as an entity. Chap- 
ter ii. 10, 13. tc That they may adorn the 
doctrine of God our Saviour"; God and his 
doctrine is the Saviour. God commanded 
Jesus Christ, as his agent, to represent him 
to the world, and obey God his Father as 
the head, and declare the new covenant to 
the world, through his blood and body. 
Verse 13, " 'Looking for that blessed hope, 
and the glorious appearing of the Great 
God and our Saviour Jesus Christ." Jesus, 
the agent and mediator between God and 
man, is often called the Saviour; the rea- 
son for this is that Jesus is a representative 
of God, and as he represents the purpose 
of God to the world, he is often called the 
Saviour, representing God the Saviour. 
This ought to settle this question that there 
is but one Saviour, and that is God the 
Supreme. 

Jesus came upon this earth as a man, on 
a mission for God; he did not come as a 
God, neither did he come to represent a 



Christ } s Mission on Earth. 107 

trinity. Scripture declares, over and over, 
that there is but one God; this trinity doc- 
trine is a farce, and an imposition on the 
intelligence of this enlightened age of the 
nineteenth century. 

There is no Scripture in the Bible to 
sustain the trinity; that there are three con- 
scious entities united in one to make a 
Godhead. I will present some Scripture 
that a large number of religious institutions 
of to-day use, this Scripture found in John 
i: 5, 7, to prove a trinity, tc For there are 
three that bear record in heaven, the Fa- 
ther, the Word and the Holy Ghost, and 
these three are one. " This is true, three are 
one, but where is the trinity ? If the three 
were different entities, then the trinity 
would be established; the Father, the 
Word, the Holy Ghost, are not three per- 
sons or entities. Scripture in this case is 
very clear; it repeats it over and over, 
that the Father is God, that the Word is 
God, that the Holy Ghost is God, one infi- 
nite, intelligent entity, and not three. 

John i, 1 ' 'And the Word was God. " John 
8, 41. Jesus said c 'we have one Father, even 
God." St. Luke ii. 13. t; How much more 



108 Dagevs Interpretation of the Bible. 

shall your Heavenly Father give the Holy 
Ghost to them that ask him/ 1 Scripture 
teaches that the Holy Spirit and the Holy 
Ghost is one in principle, an attribute of 
God and is God. These three words just 
considered is God, one entity; the religious 
institutions of the present and past ages 
have taken advantage of this text, and 
speculated with the world, and have built 
up dogma after dogma. This text in John 
i. 5, 7, is the strongest Scripture in the 
Bible to prove a trinity; instead of prov- 
ing a trinity, it proves the three words 
to be God, one entity. For centuries the 
world has been steeped in blindness by 
different creeds and dogmas, that the vica- 
rious atonement and trinity doctrine was 
true. War and blood have followed its path 
wherever it has been advocated among the 
uncivilized nations of the earth. Some parts 
of this earth have been drenched with blood 
on account of this doctrine. Protestants 
have murdered Catholics and Catholics 
have murdered Protestants, if the past his- 
tory be true, all on account of Bible doc- 
trine. False doctrine advocated among the 
people may prosper for a time in the mind 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 109 

of man, but the end is spiritual death. 
Why ? Because it is not from God, and 
any doctrine that is not truth must in 
time be null and void. The mission of Je- 
sus Christ upon this earth was to redeem 
the race from spiritual death, through re- 
formation and punishment due sin. Jesus 
gave his body and blood for a sacri- 
fice, because God prepared it for that pur- 
pose. This blood shed from an innocent 
man was not to build up a vicarious atone- 
ment, to exempt the murderer, the highway- 
man, the political thief, the pharisaical 
hypocrite from punishment clue sin. There 
is no law in the new covenant to exempt 
the sinner from punishment for sin com- 
mitted by man. To exempt the sinner from 
punishment due sin would bring down the 
standard of God to the level of finite man. 
And the purity and power that robs the 
attributes of justice and equity would be 
robbed of that pure principle that belongs 
to God, who cannot look upon sin in the 
least degree of any allowance; it must be 
punished for the good of man, and to sus- 
tain the purity of God. Man should be 
more consistent in the estimation of a 



110 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

God, who would sooner take the planets 
from their orbits and dash them to pieces, 
than to violate his own law by letting the 
sinner go free from the effect of an immu- 
table law, the character of justice and 
equity. 

This inconsistent doctrine of the trinity 
and vicarious atonement will soon find its 
grave; it must die, for it is not of God; and 
as this age is near the millennium, this doc- 
trine must die and become null and void^ 
and the simple doctrine of Jesus Christ will 
then arise from beneath the ignorance of 
this world and put on the wedding garment 
for the great reformation that is to take 
place the next age. 

Before closing this chapter I will make 
the doctrine of vicarious atonement more 
plain, by referring to some Scripture 
that will give light upon this question. 
What is atonement \ It is reconciliation. 
We will give Webster's definition of it, 
which he has, undoubtedly, collected from 
authentic sources. It is as follows: 

1 ' In theology, atonement is the expiation 
of sin made by the obedience and personal 
sufferings of Christ ;" and vicarious he ex- 



Ckrisfs Mission on Earth. Ill 

plains to be that which is ' ' performed or 
suffered in the place of another, substituted 
as a vicarious sacrifice, vicarious punish-* 
ment." 

This doctrine proceeds on the assump- 
tion that God is at enmity with the human 
race for breaking his laws, and that the 
race is thereby inevitably doomed to ever- 
lasting punishment; but the Son interpo- 
ses and takes the penalty upon himself, and 
the Father accepts of his sacrifice in place 
of the sacrifice of the race; in other words, 
it is vicarious, and in that way his anger 
is appeased, his justice is satisfied, and he 
becomes reconciled to the world, and this 
is the atonement. This is the kind of atone- 
ment that the religious institutions for cen- 
turies have fed the human race with, until 
they have become blind as to a proper un- 
derstanding of the above question. This 
is the theology atonement has taught in the 
past and present age. This gives man a 
license to sin until he is old, and then re- 
pent and be exempted from punishment 
due sin committed prior to his conversion. 
This is vicarious, and Jesus suffered in the 
place of a sinner as a substitute. That 



112 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

man, when converted, is exempt from pun- 
ishment and goes free as a condemned 
criminal, while Jesus, an innocent man, 
suffered for the crimes that this human 
fiend was guilty of. 

A doctrine of this kind is enough to 
cause the angels of heaven to blush in 
shame, and drape the walls of paradise in 
mourning. This doctrine may do for that 
imaginary God that is found in Scripture, 
and worshipped by the Jews, and also by a 
large number of religious institutions of 
this age, nursed from the breast of that im- 
aginary God. 

We will now consider some Scripture as 
to this atonement. 

Tim. i: 2-5. tc For there is one God and 
one mediator between God and man, the 
man Christ Jesus. " We now have a starting 
point to unlock the mystery of the atone- 
ment. The man Christ Jesus, the media- 
tor, the messenger, the servant, the repre 
sentative of God, between God and men 
Heb. ix: 15. He is tc the mediator of the 
New Testament, that is the new covenant, 
that by means of death for the redemption 
of the transgressions that were under the 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 113 

first Testament, 11 that is the Jewish cove- 
nant. 

This text is plain; it says that Jesus suf- 
fered death to redeem the Jews from the 
transgressions that were under the first 
Testament, the Jewish covenant. In this 
death the atonement was satisfactory to 
God, to reconcile the Jews as a nation to 
himself, by abolishing the old covenant. 
We see by this that Jesus atoned to recon- 
cile the Jews from the transgressions under 
their covenant. 

The following will throw further light 
on this point; it is in Eph. ii: 11-17: 

tk Wherefore, remember that ye being in 
time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are 
called uncircumcision, by that which is 
called the circumcision in the flesh made 
by hands. 

' L That at that time ye were without 
Christ, being aliens from the common- 
wealth of Israel and strangers from the 
covenants of promise, having no hope and 
without God in the world. 

1 L But now in Christ Jesus, ye who some- 
time were far off are made nigh by the 
blood of Christ. 



114 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

"For lie is our peace who hath made 
both one and hath broken down the mid. 
die wall of partition between us. 

1 ' Having abolished in his flesh the en- 
mity, even the law of commandments con. 
tained in ordinances for to make in himself 
of twain one new man, so making peace. 

c ' And that he might reconcile both unto 
God in one body by the cross, having slain 
the enmity thereby/ 1 

In the above Scripture we find Paul is 
addressing the assembly of Christians at 
Ephesus, which was composed of Gentiles, 
and it will be seen that he is not speaking 
of the enmity of the natural heart against 
God, but of that which existed between 
Jew and Gentile on account of the differ- 
ences in their religious ceremonies and 
their reliance on them for salvation, which 
operated as a barrier between the two races. 
Now Jesus, in bearing his testimony against 
the Jewish ritual as a necessary means of 
salvation, incurred the vengeance of its 
ministers, suffering death in consequence, 
and by so doing he broke down the ' l mid- 
dle wall of partition" between Jew and 
Gentile, and thus reconciled both to each 



Christ's Mission on Earth. 115 

other, and opened a way of reconciliation 
of both to God, through their coming to- 
gether into communities and adopting self- 
sacrifice instead of animal sacrifices; cir- 
cumcision of the heart instead of circum- 
cision of the flesh,. as the bond of union, or 
the basis of union. This is the atonement 
or reconciliation of the world to God, is ef- 
fected by a process, and this is part of the 
process, understand. Christ, by his teach- 
ings and death, effected a reconciliation 
between remnants of the Jewish nation 
and God, and also between remnants of 
Jews and Gentiles, by making the Jewish 
covenant null and void through the atone- 
ment, as Paul says, tl God, in Jesus Christ, 
reconconciling and atoning the world to 
Himself, " not as a substitute to wipe out the 
affect of sin in the soul and destroy the 
word of God, where it says 4i Whatsoever 
a man sow^eth that shall he also reap. " This 
is final, and any Scripture that is not in 
harmony with this is of no authority, and is 
evident that it has been tampered with in 
some of the revisions. Paul says, c ' Woe 
to that man that adds or takes away from 
this Gospel ; let him be accursed." 



116 Dagevs Interpretation of the Bible. 

From all this Scripture we learn that 
Christ suffers for us by suffering in us by 
the spirit. When we sacrifice ourselves, 
therefore, for the deliverance of the world 
from evil, Christ sacrifices himself in us. 
This is Christ's sacrifice, contra-distinguish- 
ed from his sacrifice of animals in the Mo- 
saic law. It will follow from this that the 
world is not saved by the personal death of 
the man Jesus Christ on the cross over eight- 
een hundred years ago, exclusively, but by 
his spirit in all those that suffer for the good 
of the race. It will follow from this that 
Christ's personal sacrifice inaugurated a 
series of sacrifices, by which the world will 
eventually be redeemed from evil, and we 
must understand, from all evil, not a part, 
that the reconciliation of individuals and 
races to each other and then their reconcil- 
iation to God, is the great object ultimately 
to be effected by the atonement and death 
of Christ. This is as Scripture says, taking 
away the sin of the world, not taking away 
punishment due sin, which, if done, would 
disgrace the government of God and de- 
stroy the element that would be the means 
of making man better. 



CHAPTER VI. 



THE CHURCH OF GOD. 



THIS is a very important question for 
man to investigate, and especially to 
the unlearned portion of the race. We 
shall consider in plain terms, according to 
the interpretation of Scripture, the true 
meaning and foundation of the church of 
God, so that any person with one talent 
may understand it, and remain inexcusable 
before God. This church for our consid- 
eration is a spiritual church, and God the 
foundation, which will justify it by Scrip- 
ture. We will learn through the investi- 
gation of this question, according to the 
constitution of the new covenant, that 
there is but one process for man to pass 
through to make him a member of this 
church; that is, he must be born with the 
Spirit of God, through strict obedience to 
the law of God; and as a reward for so do- 
ing the church of God is established in the 
soul, which makes him a member of the 



118 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

church of God, according to the principle 
involved in the new covenant. This new 
birth, which brings the church of God into 
the soul, can be obtained while a member of 
an earthly religious denomination, or not a 
member. Being a member of an earthly 
church does not generate the church of God 
in the soul; nothing but faith and obedience 
to the law will produce it. It can be pro- 
duced in an earthly church if the person 
as a member does not become accessory to 
any sin that may be practiced by some in 
that church that he belongs to. The law 
of the new covenant does not obligate any 
person to become a member of an earthly 
church. To become a member of the 
church of God, the great battle arrayed 
against evil through the principle con- 
tained in the new covenant, is to get man 
converted to the church of God, regardless 
of any religious denominations in exist- 
ence; for Scriptures recognize but one 
church for salvation; that is the spiritual 
church of God established in the soul, 
which makes man a member of the church 
of God. God in Scripture does not con- 
demn religious churches as long as they 



The Church of God. 119 

are in harmony with the principle of the 
church of God. The different religious 
churches of this world, as earthly insti- 
tutions, are not recognized by God as His 
church. But if the principle involved in 
that institution be in harmony with the 
principle contained in the spirit church of 
God, then God, according to his law, will 
recognize the spirit principle as his church, 
and not the institution, for the institution 
is of the earth, and must pass away; but 
the spirit church of God which operated 
in this earth church will continue on, and 
never pass away, because God is the foun- 
dation. 

Rev. i. 1: tc The revelation of Jesus 
Christ, which God gave unto Him. 1 ' 

Please remember in this Scripture, that 
God gave a revelation to Jesus Christ to 
show unto His servants. This proves that 
Jesus Christ was a mediator between God 
and man, and merely a servant and a mes- 
senger, subject to the dictation of God his 
Father. Scripture informs us that Jesus 
Christ came on earth to fill a mission, and 
at the same time he represents God the 
Father. Christ often speaks of himself, 



120 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

which might lead the reader to believe that 
it was God in reality; but this is not so, 
for he is a representative of God to do 
whatever God commands him to do, and 
cannot, under the constitution of the new 
covenant, do any other way, only as the 
Father showeth Him. 

Rev. i. 17: tl I am the first and the 
last/' Here Jesus represents God. 

Verse 8: ct I am Alpha and Omega, the 
beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, 
which is, and which was, and which is to 
come, the Almighty." The Alpha and 
Omega, the beginning and the ending, in 
this Scripture, is the Almighty God as shown 
to John by the angel. Scripture, in this 
book of Revelation, is plain in its demon- 
stration that God is the church and foun- 
dation, and the church that God gave 
Christ the power to establish — who have 
the keys of hell and of death, and made 
Jesus the chief corner stone of this church, 
for through Jesus w^e have access by one 
spirit unto the Father, or unto the church. 

Matt. xvi. 18: ''Thou art Peter, and 
upon this rock I will build my church." 
The Rock spoken of here is God; Christ 



The Church of God, 121 

comes to represent God, and says, I 
will build my church upon this Rock, 
meaning God as the foundation. Christ is 
not the Rock, but the chief corner stone in 
power in the church. 

Ephesians i. 22. wt And gave Him to be 
the head over all things to the church, 
which is His body." 

To establish the church of God, accord- 
ing to the principle incorporated in the new 
covenant, it was necessary for Christ to give 
His body and shed His blood as a sacrifice 
to seal the covenant and establish the spirit 
church of God, which makes the spirit and 
power in this sacrifice the head of this 
church, and not Jesus Christ as an entity. 

St. John x. 9. C4 1 am the door. 17 

St. John xiv. 6. 4l Jesus saith unto him, 
I am the w T ay, the truth and the life; no 
man cometh unto the Father but by me. " 

These two texts mean one thing. Jesus 
as an entity is not the door, nor the way, 
nor the truth, it was the spirit. The prin- 
ciple wrapped up in His blood, that is the 
door, the way, the truth and the life, and 
also the key of hell and death, which un- 
locks the mystery of this great salvation 



122 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

to the race, and brings to light, life and im- 
mortality beyond the grave. 

St. Luke xxiv. 46, 17, 18 and 19 : 

"■And said unto them, thus it is written, 
and thus it behooves Christ to suffer and to 
rise from the dead the third day." 

" And that repentance and remission of 
sins should be preached in His name among 
all nations, beginning at Jerusalem, and ye 
are witnesses of these things.' 7 

4 • And behold I send the promise of my 
Father upon you, but tarry ye in the city 
of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with 
power from on high." 

Jesus has risen from the dead, and the 
church of God is established. 

Jesus now gives His apostles the con- 
ditions to qualify them to go and preach 
the Gospel to all nations, beginning at 
Jerusalem. 

Acts ii. 1, 2, 3 and 4 : 

' ' And when the day of pentecost was 
fully come, they were all with one accord 
in one place." 

c l And suddenly there came a sound from 
heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it 
filled all the house where they were sitting. " 



The Church of God. 123 

' ' And there appeared unto them cloven 
tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each 
of them. " 

c ' And they were all filled with the Holy 
Ghost, and began to speak with other 
tongues, as the spirit gave them utterance. " 

Peter preaches the first sermon on this 
occasion, on this day under this revival, 
about three thousand souls were added to 
the church. On this day the glad tidings 
of the new dispensation thundered from 
the court of the church of God, devel- 
oped itself by a rushing mighty wind, 
filling the house with the spirit power from 
the mercy seat of the church. Cloven 
tongues, like as of fire, sat upon each one 
of them, taking control of the gifts of the 
inner man as mediums, speaking through 
them the different languages of the world, 
baptizing them with the Holy Spirit, and 
to be armed with the full armor of the 
church of God, which qualified them in a 
condition to make war against evil, wher- 
ever it might be found, regardless of friend 
or foe. 

On this great day of revival, on the day of 
pentecost, the inauguration of the true 



124 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

church of God took place, under the prin- 
ciple spirit and power of the new covenant, 
the fountain head from whence came the 
true church of God, whose mighty power 
was felt on the day of pentecost, in the 
hearts of about three thousand souls, angel 
spirits from the spirit world presiding over 
that meeting, mixed with the living in 
their enjoyments, singing praises to God 
for the established religion of the new 
covenant, and to be the religion of all ages 
in the future, to the end of the race. 

This meeting was presided over by the 
Holy Ghost, operating upon the different 
gifts of those present, which is in harmony 
with what Paul said. The different gifts 
of different ones must be exercised accord- 
ingly in the church, for the benefit of one 
and all, that God might be all and in all. 
This meeting was a sample of true religion, 
which is to be the patter in all future ages 
of the world, for man to worship and exer- 
cise his gifts. The same in the religious 
church that he may belong, the Holy Ghost 
must preside, or your religion is dead. It 
says in this revival that those that believed 
sold their possessions and goods, and parted 



The Church of God. 125 

them to all men, as every man had need. 
This act they did voluntarily. They were 
not obligated by God to do this, but were 
obligated to exercise their gifts by the 
power of the Holy Ghost. 

The government that controlled that re- 
vival controls the church of God to-day, 
and in all ages to come. And all religious 
institutions of the world, that are not on 
this ground to-day, are on dangerous 
ground, where apostacy is written on 
their walls. The church of God is a spir- 
itual church and not a material church. 

Inside of sixty-five years this church from 
the time of this revival became corrupt and 
in a state of apostacy. All through Asia 
Minor the churches became corrupt by 
wicked men creeping into the church, and 
remaining there without being removed, 
as the law of the church prescribed, and it 
fell into a state of apostacy, and God spewed 
them out of His mouth. But in that con- 
condition the church of God did not die, 
neither was it buried, but it lived through 
all the persecutions of that age and the dark 
ages of the world, and still lives in this 
wicked age of ours, and will continue on to 



126 Dage7 : s Interpretation of the Bible. 

live until the last enemy is destroyed, which 
is death. Then it will put on its wedding 
garment and hand over its jewels, that were 
washed in the blood of the lamb, to God 
the Father. Then the church will sing the 
song of the redeemed race of men, when 
the race will be united in one brotherhood, 
the union of all, and the victory of the 
church written upon the walls of eternity, 
one family, one God, Father of all. 

The foundation of the church is laid. We 
will now T consider the doctrine that Christ 
commanded His twelve apostles to preach 
to all nations. Jesus in all His sayings 
gives the nations of the earth to under- 
stand that this gospel that He commands 
His apostles to preach, is final, and the 
standard for the race to be guided by in all 
ages to come. The angel informs John, 
the revelator, while upon the Isle of Pat- 
mos, 1 4 Woe to the man that adds or takes 
away the words of this gospel. " l c Be not de- 
ceived, for God will not be mocked, for 
whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he 
reap." 

Galatians i. 8. 4t But though we or an 
angel from heaven, preach any other gospel 



The Church of God. 127 

unto you than that which we have preached 
unto you, let him be accursed." 

This gospel that Paul speaks about here 
is the same gospel that Christ told His 
apostles to preach, when He sent them out. 
Any man or religious institution that 
preaches any gospel beside this, is an 
apostacy and an enemy to the church of 
God. This is not the saying of the writer, 
but the law of this gospel, a finality. 

St. Mark iii, 13 and 14 : 

' % And He goeth up into a mountain and 
calleth unto Him whom He would, and they 
came unto Him." 

fc k And He ordained twelve, that they 
should be with him, and that He might 
send them forth to preach. " 

St. Mark vi. 7. %% AndHe called unto 
Him the twelve, and began to send them 
forth by two and two." 

Matt. x. 7-10. kt And as ye go, preach, 
saying, the kingdom of heaven is at hand : 
heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the 
dead, cast out devils ; freely ye have re- 
ceived, freely give. Provide neither gold 
nor silver, nor brass in your purses, nor 
scrip for your journey, neither two coats, 



128 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

neither shoes, nor yet staves, for the work- 
man is worthy of his meat.' 1 

The interpretation of this command is as 
follows : The kingdom of heaven is at 
hand, that is, the spiritual church of God 
is at hand, to be preached by the apostles, 
according to the constitution of the new 
covenant. 

cc Heal the sick and cleanse the lepers." 

This is literal in its meaning, and a plank 
in the foundation of the church of God, 
never to be removed, and woe to that man 
that removes it. A person cannot heal the 
sick by laying on of the hands without a 
gift of that kind born in him, then the 
spirit and power of God operates through 
this magnetic gift, as the property of man, 
and it is discretionary to the person having 
this gift to develope and" use it for the 
benefit of man, or let it be in a state of 
lethargy. But woe to that man if he lets 
it sleep and not use it. 

Did these apostles have these gifts ? They 
did have them, according to Paul, or they 
could not have healed them. For God 
operates upon the gifts of man to accom- 
plish His purpose. If there is no gift to 



The Church of God 129 

operate upon, for God cannot operate on 
nothing, the man with no gift of that kind 
is not responsible. We have to-day, and in 
all ages, some persons with the gift of heal- 
ing. If this be not true, then Paul and the 
writers of the New Testament stand before 
the world as false representatives. 

Jesus commanded His apostles as they 
went forth to preach, to raise the dead. 

St. Luke vii. 22. Li Then Jesus answering 
said unto them, go your way and tell John 
what things ye have seen and heard. How 
that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers 
are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are 
raised, to the poor the gospel ispreached. " 

St. John xi. 43, 44. Jesus raised Laza- 
rus. Did any of the apostles raise the 
dead ? 

Acts ix. 40. t; Peter raised a woman by 
the name of Tabitha, who died, whom, 
when they washed, they laid her in an 
upper chamber. " 

Acts xx. 10. St. Paul raised a young 
man to life that fell from the third story of 
a building and was killed. 

A large number of religious people of 
this age believe this to be true in the apos- 



130. Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

tolic age, for the purpose of establishing 
the gospel; then to cease as a power in 
man. Miracles of that age, some claim, 
are done away with in this age. If the 
same gifts that existed in man in that age 
do not exist in man to-day, and the same 
miracles cannot be done to-day as in that 
age, then the Scripture is of no force or 
power over man; it is a blank, and dead 
to the race of man. Is there any person 
living to-day on this beautiful earth of 
ours that has a gift to raise the dead, if 
properly developed ? There is. If there 
is not, then this gospel stands before the 
world to-day as a libel. What are the qual- 
ifications necessary for a medium of this 
gift to raise the dead ? Let Christ answer 
this question; then vain man of vanities, 
have confidence in this gospel. Christ 
says in his word, that man with this gift 
must live for it, and be developed with 
purity of soul, and your nature, body and 
soul, spiritualized with the spirit of God; 
then, as Christ speaks to man, to have faith 
as large as a mustard seed, you then can 
remove a mountain in a figure, so qualify 
yourself, then approach God with faith 



The Church of God, 131 

and prayer. Ask God to do this work 
through the Christ principle, then the dead 
will be raised. According to Scripture 
there are but few persons in any age of the 
world that have this gift. But there 
are some in all ages that have this gift; 
whether they have come to the surface or 
not, or whether the people believe it or 
not, it will not change the truth. Let 
Jesus speak again: 

St. John xiv. 12: " Verily, verily, I say 
unto you, he that believeth on me, the 
works that I do shall he do also; and 
greater w^orks than these shall he do, be- 
cause I go unto my Father/' Notice the 
emphasis, the force of his utterance on this 
word of his. The interpretation of the 
word c c believeth on me," is strict obedi- 
ence to the law of God, through the word 
of our Elder Brother. Then a person with 
this gift, living in strict obedience to the 
law of God, can raise the dead through the 
power of God, as Jesus Christ did himself 
by the powder of God. This is the works 
of Jesus, and he says the person that has 
this gift, and lives for it, can raise the 
dead, as he did; li and greater works can 



132 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

he do, for I go unto my Father. " Will the 
ignorance of this world rise up in the self- 
conceited vanity of their manhood, with- 
out investigating this question ? Millions 
deny it, and scorn at the question of the 
dead being raised in this age of the world. 
But this is the course of nature, of all un- 
developed minds, whose eyes of their under- 
standing are blind with the scales of ig- 
norance, and the most of them are willing 
to remain so, by the education they have 
received, by being rocked in the religious 
cradle of this age. 

The next thing that Christ commanded 
his apostles to do was to cast out devils. 
There has been a great deal of speculation 
among the people of all ages in regard to 
this word devil. It is evident by the terms 
of the Scripture that there is no personal 
devil, as advocated by the Christian relig- 
ion of this age. Scripture in general terms 
interpret devil as evil coming from man 
by disobedience; then in some other parts 
of Scripture it says these devils are evil 
spirits, and that these spirits are used as a 
figure to illustrate disease in the human 
system. 



The Church of God. 133 

St. Mark ix. 1 7 : " Master, I have brought 
unto thee my son, which hath a dumb 
spirit/ 1 Verse 18: wt And wheresoever he 
taketh him he teareth him; and he foam- 
eth and gnasheth with his teeth, and 
pineth away. " Verse 22 : c fc And ofttimes 
it hath east him into the fire, # and into the 
waters to destroy him." The father of 
this child asked Jesus to heal him ; He then 
healed the boy. Verse 25: " Jesus re- 
buked the foul spirit, saying unto him, 
Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee 
come out of him, and enter no more into 
him." Verse 26: tc And the spirit cried, 
and rent him sore, and came out of him." 
This looks as if the dumb spirit might have 
been an entity; but the reader must judge 
for himself, for the Scripture is silent on 
this question as to who these spirits were, 
and where they came from. Scripture will 
justify that they were not devils, as advo- 
cated by the Christian religion of to-day. 

St. Mark v. 4 ' And they came over unto 
the other side of the sea, into the country 
of the Gradarenes. And when he was come 
out of the ship, immediately there met 
him out of the tombs a man with an un- 



134 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

clean spirit, who had his dwelling among 
the tombs; and no man could bind him, 
no, not with chains; because that he had 
been often bound with fetters and chains, 
and the chains had been plucked asunder 
by him, and the fetters broken in pieces; 
neither could any man tame him. And al- 
ways, night and day, he was in the moun- 
tains and in the tombs, crying and cutting 
himself with stones. But when he saw 
Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him, 
and cried with a loud voice, and said, 
What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou 
Son of the most high God ? I adjure thee, 
by God, that thou torment me not. For 
he said unto him, Come out of the man, 
thou unclean spirit. And he asked him, 
What is thy name? And he answered, 
saying, My name is Legion; for we are 
many. And he besought him much that 
he would not send them away out of the 
country. Now there was there nigh unto 
the mountains a great herd of swine feed- 
ing; and all the devils besought him, say- 
ing, Send us into the swine, that we may 
enter into them. And forthwith Jesus 
gave them leave; and the unclean spirits 



The Church of God. 135 

went out, and entered into the swine; and 
the herd ran violently down a steep place 
into the sea (they were about two thou- 
sand), and were choked in the sea. And 
they that fed the swine fled, and told it in 
the city and in the country, and they went 
out to see what it was that was done/ 1 
Verse 17: ct And they began to pray him 
to depart out of their coast." 

Is this Scripture reliable as to this trans- 
action ? Can the intelligenc of the nine- 
teenth century believe this report to be 
true, after giving the question a fair con- 
sideration? Notice the reading of this 
story, and see how precise the formation of 
every w^ord, and every act performed, and 
then consider in a consistent way through 
reason and common sense, after having this 
story handed down from father to son 
through tradition, for one hundred and 
fifty years before being put in print. In this 
consideration, can this story be believed ? 
It cannot. It is absurd in its character, 
and not in harmony with the teachings of 
Jesus Christ. Jesus never came on this 
earth to destroy innocent property, and 
cause the owner of the property to damn 



136 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

him off, and beg of him to leave the coun- 
try after being the means of destroying 
two thousand swine that perchance some 
poor hard-working, honest man worked 
hard to raise these swine and accumulate 
that number. Was Jesus guilty of this 
crime ? If he was, it does not sound like 
that Jesus that said to his brother man, 
t4 As ye would have men do unto you, do 
ye likewise unto them. " 

St. Luke viii. 2. ct Mary called Magda- 
lene, out of whom went seven devils. " 

This Mary was a sister to Martha and 
Lazarus. Mary had been a great sinner, 
and while indulging in sin, through the 
different elements of her nature, she heard 
that Jesus was at meat at a Pharisee's 
house. 

St. Luke vii. c ' She took an alabaster 
box of ointment and stood at His feet be- 
hind Him weeping, and began to wash His 
feet with tears, and did wipe them with the 
hairs of her head, and kissed His feet and 
anointed them with the ointment." 

Consider the condition of Mary, a sinner, 
with several leading sins that she had been 
committing, coming to Jesus with a broken 



The Church of God. 137 

heart and a contrite spirit, feeling her guilt 
and wanted to be relieved of this hell in 
her soul, she comes to Jesus for help, hav- 
ing faith in Him. All broken down with 
a guilty conscience, sheding tears of sor- 
row, and kissing and wiping His feet 
with the tears of her soul, and in this pros- 
trated condition of Mary, Jesus, with that 
noble and loving soul of His, turned to 
Mary and said unto her, tl Thy sins are 
forgiven, for she loved much/ 1 Think for 
a moment the feeling that went through 
her soul. This is the Mary that followed 
Jesus through His persecutions, and was 
at His grave in the morning after the angels 
had taken Him away. 

The seven devils that were taken from 
Mary by Jesus Christ, were not evil spirit 
entities in Mary. This is an allegory, a 
figure to illustrate the leading sins of 
Mary, and when Jesus forgave her she was 
relieved, and the devils left her ; that is, 
she was born again, and headed in the 
narrow path of happiness and quit yielding 
her members to sin any more. 

Jesus in most all of His sayings spoke in 
parables, and in my opinion, and I think 



138 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible, 

that the Scripture will justify my state- 
ment, that there was never an evil spirit 
called a devil, a conscious entity ever cast 
out of man by Jesus Christ or the apostles. 
It was nothing more or less than spiritual 
and physical disease of the soul and body, 
such as leading sins; and lunacy and fits. 
These diseases Jesus and the apostles re- 
moved, and in the parable they were called 
devils and dumb and deaf evil spirits. 

This is wiiat is meant when Jesus told 
His apostles to cast out devils, they under- 
stood the parable, and a person of this age 
with that gift, and who lives for it, can do 
the same. 

1 Cor. xii. Spiritual gifts were ordered 
by Paul to be used in the churches. iL God 
hath set some in the church, first apostles, 
secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers ; after 
that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, 
governments, diversities of tongues, 7? inter- 
pretation of tongues, prophecy, discerning 
of spirits. These gifts were ordered by 
Jesus Christ, and the apostles to be used in 
the church for the benefit of man and the 
conversion of their souls. The constitution 
of this church was to remain as a standard, 



The Church of God. 139 

and final in its character, as an example for 
all coming churches in the ages to come. 
God planted this church, and woe to that 
man that adds or takes away, and any re- 
ligious institution of this age that is not in 
harmony with this church, Paul says, let 
them be accursed as an apostacy. 

1 Peter v. The duty of ministers in 
charge of a church : 

4 c The elders which are among you I ex- 
hort, who am also an elder, and a witness of 
the sufferings of Christ, and also a par- 
taker of the glory that shall be revealed. 

ct Feed the flock of God, which is among 
you, taking the oversight thereof, not by 
constraint, but willingly ; not for filthy 
lucre, but of a ready mind. 

k ' Neither as being lords over God's heri- 
tage, but ensamples to the flock. 71 

Acts xx. 26-28 : 

Verse 17 : 4t And from Miletus He sent 
to Ephesus and called the elders of the 
church." 

Verse 26 : tc Wherefore I take you to 
record this day, that I am pure from the 
blood of all men." 

Verse 27 : ' For I have not shunned to 



1 ±0 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible, 

declare unto you all the counsel of God. " 
Verse 28 : ct Take heed therefore unto 
yourselves and to all the flock, over the 
which the Holy Ghost hath made you over- 
seers, to feed the church of God which he 
hath purchased with His own blood/ 1 

Paul says to the elders that He has de- 
clared the whole counsel of God, to the 
people where He preached. He had or- 
dained minister after minister, and charged 
them to preach the truth, and nothing but 
the truth. And above all things, estab- 
lish and exercise the spiritual gifts that 
God has given to you in the church : such 
as wisdom, knowledge, healing the sick, 
miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, 
divers kinds of tongues, the interpretation 
of tongues. This is the gospel that Paul 
preached, and charges these elders to 
preach the same. 

Is this gospel that Paul preached the 
same in its fullness in the religious institu- 
tions of this age and land of ours. Search 
the continent over and see if there can be 
found one institution following the exam- 
bles of Jesus Christ and the apostles ? No, 
not one. They are all gone astray. They 



The Church of God. 141 

are at the foot of the hill and cannot climb 
the top : their coat is off and cannot get it 
on : they have trifled with sin too long. Jez- 
ebel and the Pharisee are there ; they have 
taken some churches with the appearance 
of a beautiful monument, full of all man- 
ner of corruption. If you want to find the 
fashion of the world, it is there ; if you want 
to find a Pharisaical hypocrite doing busi- 
ness under the cloak of religion, he is there ; 
if you want to find an idolater or a fornica- 
tor or a liar, with plenty of money flowing 
from his pocket, he is there. 

Is this the kind of religion that is to con- 
vert the world, the enemy of that pure 
principle wrapped up in the new covenant, 
generated from the precious blood of our 
elder brother, who warned the world be- 
fore He left, to keep the church pure, and 
to God who cannot in this enlightened age 
look upon sin in the least degree of any al- 
lowance. 

1 Peter iii. Finally " Be ye all of one 
mind, having comparison one of another, 
love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous. 

•*Xot rendering evil for evil, or railing 
for railing, but contrarywise blessing. 



142 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

knowing that ye are thereunto called, that 
ye should inherit a blessing." 

How beautiful this gospel compares with 
the words of Jesus, when He said, t4 Love 
one another, " 4 ' Do unto others as ye would 
have them do unto you." This pure prin- 
ciple of religion, generated from the new 
covenant, incorporated in our early church 
is to be the principle to guide all churches 
in the future ages of the world; if these 
principles are lived up to in the religious 
institutions of the world, success and pros- 
prosperity will crown their labor, and if not 
lived up to, ruin, destruction and blood 
will follow r their path. 

Jaines iii. 11. ct Doth a fountain send 
forth at the same place sweet water and 
bitter?" Can the church carry God in one 
hand and the w r orld in the other, and force 
the kingdom of heaven by violence ? 

Eph. iv. — How members of the church 
should live: t4 That ye put off concerning 
the former conversation the old man, which 
is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, 
and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 
and that ye put on the new man, which 
after God is created in righteousness and 



The Church of Goa. 143 

true holiness." Here Ave have a descrip- 
tion of the new birth in man; the change 
that is made through this conversion. It 
changes his whole course of conduct. He 
puts off the old man by forsaking sin and 
the broad road that leads to ruin, and has 
put on the new man by being obedient to 
God, and now in the narrow path that 
leads to happiness. 

tfc Wherefore putting away lying, speak 
every man truth with his neighbor: for 
we are members one of another." ct Be ye 
angry, and sin not; let not the sun go 
down upon your wrath/ 1 iL Let all bitter- 
ness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, 
and evil speaking, be put away from you, 
with all malice: and be ye kind one to an- 
other, tender hearted, forgiving one an- 
other, even as God for Christ's sake hath 
forgiven you. " 

In consideration of the church of God, 
as we find it in Scripture, we find a dis- 
cipline regulating the forms of doctrine 
for man to be guided by, and w^hat he must 
do, and how he must do it, to be justified, 
so as to harmonize with the law and the 
spirit of the church that Jesus Christ es- 



144 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

tablished while on earth, and whatever Je- 
sus Christ advocated, and commanded 
his apostles to advocate as to the true doc- 
trine of the church, must be final, and the 
standard of the doctrine of the church, 
never to be changed or cease in its power 
until the church has accomplished what 
God purposed it should. 

Matt. x. 7, 8: Here we find that Jesus 
Christ sent out His apostles to preach the 
doctrine of the church, which was to be 
final as a standard of the Christian relig- 
ion in all ages to come, to Christianize the 
race to God. Verse 7: tc And as ye go, 
preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is 
at hand," or the church of God is at hand. 
Verse 8 : 4 L Heal the sick, cleanse the lep- 
ers, raise the dead, cast out devils; freely 
ye have received, freely give.' 7 

Mark i. 14, 15: ct Now after that John 
was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, 
preaching the gospel of the kingdom of 
God, and saying, The time is fulfilled, and 
the kingdom of God is at hand; repent ye, 
and believe the gospel." 

Matt, xxviii. 18-20. Verse 18, lt And 
Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, 



The Church of God. 145 

All power is given unto me in heaven and 
inearth." Verse 19: tc Go ye, therefore; 
and teach all nations, baptizing them in 
the name of the Father, and of the Son, 
and of the Holy Ghost: Verse 20: Teach- 
ing them to observe all things whatsoever 
I have commanded you; and lo, I am with 
you alway, even unto the end of the 
world." 

The question for the religious institu- 
tions of this age to consider, is the doc- 
trine as we find it in the above Scripture, 
that Jesus Christ advocated in the apos- 
tolic church to be final, and observed by 
all religious institutions down to the end 
of time. The answer to this question is 
positive, if it be true that this doctrine, as 
we find it advocated in the apostolic 
churclr, is to remain and be observed as 
the church until man ceases to be born; 
then we have positive proof that the Chris- 
tian religion of this age is in a state of 
apostacy, and not recognized by God as 
the true church that Christ established. 
When we examine the doctrine of the apos- 
tolic church, and compare it with the doc- 
trine of the Christian religion in this age 



146 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

of the nineteenth century, it causes the 
blood of man to turn cold, and the angels 
of heaven to weep in tears. If the present 
Christian religion was true, and in har- 
mony with the doctrine of the apostolic 
church, could man think for a moment 
that crime wmild increase? No, no; it 
would decrease in the very nature of the 
church, as God the foundation, and the 
Holy Spirit, the presiding element and 
power to reconcile the world to God. The 
apostolic church was established to con- 
vert the world to God, and not ruin it 
by the increase of crime. After the resur- 
rection of Jesus Christ, Jesus went into 
Galilee, into a mountain, and spake unto 
his eleven disciples, saying, u Goye there- 
fore and teach all nations, teaching them 
to observe all things whatsoever I have 
commanded you." Here are the last words 
and command that Jesus Christ gave his 
disciples before his ascension; and what is 
this command ? Are these the words of a 
hypocrite, or is this command direct from 
the court of God ? If from a hypocrite, 
this Scripture is a libel, and unworthy, of 
the notice of man. If from God, and law 



The Church of God. 147 

in the apostolic age and church, then it is 
law in this age, and all ages to come, and 
a part of the constitution of the new cov- 
enant, never to cease, or be tampered 
with or altered in any age to come. At 
that time, Jesus said to them to c 4 observe 
all things whatsoever I have commanded 
you/' What are these things? Jesus 
commanded them to heal the sick, cleanse 
the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils, 
and to develop the gifts within them strictly 
for the benefit of man, such as wisdom, 
knowledge, faith, and the gifts of healing, 
the working of miracles, prophecy, dis- 
cerning of spirits, divers kinds of tongues, 
the interpretation of tongues. 

In 1 Cor. xii., Paul, the great apostle of 
the age, said to the apostolic church, that 
these gifts must be exercised for the ben- 
efit of the members of that church as a 
part of the constitution of the church of God. 
This is the church that Christ established 
on earth to reconcile the world to God. 
There is no Scripture in the New Testa- 
ment that is at w^ar with the doctrine and 
the constitution of the apostolic church. 
This w^as and is the universal church for 



148 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

the salvation of the race in all ages to 
come. Scripture speaks to man that any 
religious institution in any age to come 
that is not in harmony, and teaching the 
doctrine as found in the apostolic church, 
is an apostacy, and in the end of the Gen- 
tile age it will find its grave, and the true 
spiritual church will elevate itself from be- 
neath the debris of ignorance, and the false 
doctrine of some religious churches of this 
age, and be clothed once more with the 
Spirit of God and our Elder Brother, who 
laid his life down that the world should 
be saved through it, and He, the Son of 
God, should see of the travail of his soul 
and be satisfied. 

1 Cor. xii. 28-30. We find in this Scrip- 
ture, in positive terms, the discipline and 
form of his doctrine to be observed and 
obeyed in his church. Verse 28: 4C And 
God hath set some in the church, first, 
apostles; secondarily, prophets; thirdly, 
teachers; after that, miracles, then gifts 
of healing, helps, governments, diversities 
of tongues." Verse 29: tc Are all apos- 
tles ? are all prophets ? are all teachers ? 
are all workers of miracles?" Verse 30: 



The Church of God. 149 

k k Have all the gifts of healing 2 do all 
speak with tongues ? do all interpret ?" 
How plainly Grod has laid out his rules to 
be exercised in his church with the differ- 
ent gifts Grod has given man to be used for 
the benefit of the race, proving it to be 
final, and a standard for the church for- 
ever. 



CHAPTER VII. 



THE NEW BIRTH. 



What is the fundamental principle of 
the spiritual birth ? 

This is a very important question for con- 
sideration in the past. In my opinion, this 
question has not had its just interpreta- 
tion by some of the religious creeds of the 
present and past ages. 

In considering this question in harmony 
with Scripture, we must build its founda- 
tion upon the words of Jesus Christ, and 
as an introduction of this question to the 
world, we will refer the reader to certain 
portions of Scripture, which will give light 
that we may comprehend the spirit princi- 
ple which creates the spiritual birth. I 
will confine myself to the strict spirit prin- 
ciple of this birth ; then if this birth be true 
as we find it in Scripture, it is of itself 
proof that in this nineteenth century there 
are a very few adult persons that have re- 
ceived this spiritual birth In examining 



The New Birth. 151 

Scripture in regard to this question, we 
will find but one order and system to 
create this birth. Any Scripture in col- 
lision with this system is not reliable. 

St. John iii. Christ says to Nicodemus, 
4 1 Except a man be born again he cannot 
see the kingdom of God." That is, enjoy 
the spirit of God in the soul by this new 
birth. Ye must be born again of the spirit 
of God. ct God is a spirit, and they that 
worship Him must worship him in spirit 
and in truth." How positive the order and 
system of God's command. 

What is the spirit of God, is it an entity 
or non-entity ? It is an element belonging 
to the entity of the Godhead. Is it to be 
seen ? Christ says it is not to be seen, but 
to be felt, as He likens it to the wind, as 
the wind is felt so is the spirit of God. The 
spirit of God is force, active power, strength, 
influence, legal authority ; this is the em- 
bodiment of the spirit. 

St. John vi. 63. 4t The words that I 
speak unto you, they are spirit and they 
are life." What words does Christ refer 
to? 

Rom. xiii. 8, 9. " Owe no man anything, 



152 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

but to love one another, for lie that loveth 
another hath fulfilled the law." The next 
verse tell us what to do to love one another, 
4 c For this thou shalt not commit adultery, 
thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, 
thou shalt not bear false witness, thou shalt 
not covet, and if there be any other com- 
mandment, it is briefly comprehended in 
this saying, namely, 1 1 Thou shalt love thy 
neighbor as thyself." 

Galatians v. 14. ' c For all the law is ful- 
filled in one word, even in this, thou shalt 
love thy neighbor as thyself." 

Matt. xxii. 37-40. lt Jesus said unto 
him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God 
with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, 
and with all thy mind. (To love God is to 
obey the commandments.) This is the first 
and great commandment, and the second is 
like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor 
as thyself; on these two commandments 
hang all the law and the prophets." 

Matt. vii. Vl. tc Therefore, all things 
whatsoever ye would that men should do 
to you, do ye even so to them, for this is 
the law and the prophets." 

Matt. v. 17. Christ says, " Think not 



The New Birth. 153 

that I am come to destroy the law or the 
prophets, I am come not to destroy but to 
fulfill." Notice the emphasis that Christ 
speaks in the above. He came to honor 
that law and perpetuate it as a final law for 
man to be guided by in the future dispen- 
sations. 

The above Scripture gives the interpre- 
tation of the spirit and the word, that gen- 
erates the new birth into the soul ; it is 
obedience and faith in the above law. 

To establish the spiritual birth in the 
soul man must have a genuine reformation, 
through strict obedience to the law of God, 
that is, he must leave the broad road of sin, 
with an honest intention and enter upon the 
road of virtue, by leaving off bad habits and 
sin, and form new habits according to law, 
and through this repentence man has for- 
giveness from God, that is, man is recon- 
ciled to the law. In that condition, man is 
reconciled to God as far as he has gone. 
Reconciliation and forgiveness mean one 
thing in Scripture. It does not reconcile 
man to God by exempting him from punish- 
ment due sin prior to his starting a new 
life by doing good. To do that, it would 

10 



154 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

violate the law of God, and trample under 
foot justice and equity, for the law of God 
distinctly says that l ' Whatsoever a man 
soweth he must reap.' 1 It is final. The 
reaping is for the benefit and the means to 
help round man out in the growth of this 
birth after starting a new life. According 
to Scripture, punishment is just as neces- 
sary as the spirit of God is. They both 
work together to purify the man, so as to 
enjoy the full benefit of this new birth by 
cultivation. 

Nicodemus was a Pharisee, a ruler of the 
Jews, a man of notoriety and a leading 
light among his people, educated in the 
Jewish religion, under the first covenant, 
the letter that made no one perfect. He 
was an ardent zealous worker in the Jewish 
church ; honest and upright in his views ; 
and when Nicodemus came to Jesus by 
night, he came to Him as an honest man, 
to learn from Christ. For the miracles that 
Christ performed confounded Nicodemus, 
and stirred the soul of this ruler to a 
serious consideration, and while in this con- 
dition he came to Jesus, saying : ' ' For no 
man can do these miracles that Thou doest, 



The New Birth. 155 

except God be with him." This Scripture 
is plain enough to give man a reason to be- 
lieve that Nicodemus was under conviction, 
and felt within his own soul that there was 
something significant and wonderful in this 
man Jesus Christ, and Nicodemus was 
eager to understand this new doctrine. In 
view of this. Jesus, the Son of God. makes 
His reply to Nicodemus. saying : ' • Ye 
must be born again of the spirit to become 
a member of the kingdom of God." Jesus 
said: "Ye must be born again." From 
what \ That is the question for our con- 
sideration. Why. and for what cause must 
a man be born again \ The cause is a just 
one. and as follows : The Jewish covenant 
was imperfect, it was the letter and not the 
spirit, for the spirit was of the new cove- 
nant, and the new covenant is what Jesus' 
wanted Nicodemus born to. Not only him. 
but the Jews as a nation. 

This birth, being born again, is conver- 
sion. Meaning this, to be converted from 
one belief and doctrine to another. The 
covenant that the Jews were under was now 
to be abolished and the new covenant 
established. That is whv Jesus said to 



156 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

Nicodemus, 4t Ye must be born again, 1 ' 
that is, yon and the Jewish nation, must 
be converted by accepting the new cove- 
nant and abide by its laws, and forsake the 
old covenant. The principle of this spir- 
itual birth was, to be converted from one 
belief to another ; from the Jewish covenant 
to the present covenant, wherein is spir- 
itual life. 

Was Nicodemus converted to this cove- 
nant of Christ ? He Avas. 

St. John vii. 50, 51. ' ' Nicodemus saith 
unto them, he that came to Jesus by night, 
being one of them." 

Verse 51. tc Doth our law judge any 
man before it hear him, and know what he 
doeth ? " 

In the above Scripture Nicodemus de- 
fends Jesus Christ. 

St. John xix. 39. ' 4 And there came also 
Nicodemus, (which at the first came to 
Jesus by night,) and brought a mixture of 
myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pound 
weight;" and they used this myrrh on the 
body of Christ, as the manner of the Jews 
is to bury. 

The active part that Nicodemus took in 



The New Birth. 157 

defending and aiding in. the burial of the 
body of Jesus Christ, is good evidence that 
Nieodemus was born again of the spirit by 
believing the doctrine of Christ. Believ- 
ing according to Scripture is obedience to 
the law that man is subject to, that which 
constitutes the new birth. Mere believing 
and not obeying that which a man believes, 
is not conversion, being born again. A 
man may believe everything that Jesus 
Christ said, and not obey, can be a human 
fiend. This, and this alone, constitutes 
the new birth. Being born again of the 
spirit and strictly obeying the command- 
ments, with faith in God. 

We have given the form and system, ac- 
cording to Scripture, of being born of the 
spirit, and what man must do to secure 
this birth. And in view of this, we will 
consider by Scripture in 1 Cor. xii. , what 
a person is in duty bound to do, after being 
born again, in exercising the gifts within 
him. This order and command that Paul 
gave the brethren at Corinth, to the Geii- 
tiles, were strict, and must be obeyed. 
The Scripture referred to here that every 
converted person in the church or out of it, 



158 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

must exercise their gifts for the benefit of 
mankind, and held responsible to God for 
the same. God holds man responsible for 
the gift he has and no more. 

Paul said now concerning spiritual gifts, 
c l Brethren, I would not have you ignor- 
ant. 7 ' Now, there are diversities of gifts, 
but the same spirit ; and there are differ- 
ences of administrations, but the same 
Lord ; and there are diversities of opera- 
tions; but it is the same God which work- 
eth all in all, but the manifestation of the 
spirit is given to every man to profit with 
all. For to one is given by the spirit, the 
word of wisdom ; to another, the word of 
knowledge, by the same spirit ; to another, 
faith, by the same spirit ; to another, the 
gift of healing, by the same spirit ; to an- 
other, the working of miracles ; to another, 
prophecy ; to another, discerning of spirits; 
to another, divers kinds of tongues ; to an- 
other, the interpretation of tongues. ' 'Now 
ye are the body of Christ and members in 
particular, and God hath set some in the 
church; first apostles, secondarily prophets, 
thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then 
gifts of .healings, helps, governments, di- 



The New Birth. 159 

versities of tongues." Are all apostles? 
Are all prophets ? Are all teachers ? Are 
all workers of miracles ? Have all the gifts 
of healing I Do all speak with tongues ? 
Do all interpret ? 

Verse 11. tc But all these worketh that 
one and the self-same spirit, that is God, 
dividing to every man severally as He will. " 
Paul, in this Scripture, gives the true sys- 
tem and government of apostolic church, 
as a final and standard principle for all re- 
lious creeds in future ages, to adopt and 
act in harmony with the apostolic church 
in every particular, for the benefit of all 
the members of the church and mankind. 

St. Mark xvi. 14-18. After Jesus had 
risen from the dead, he appeared unto the 
eleven of His deciples, and gave His final 
and last command to the world, never to be 
amended nor altered, but final, and a 
standard of principles to govern all relig- 
ious creeds in all future ages to come, and 
woe to that man or church that takes from 
it or adds to it, for Grod is not to be mocked ; 
man must reap what he sows. 

These were His last words before he w^as 
received up into heaven. 



160 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

' 4 And He said unto His deeiples, Go ye 
into all the world and preach the gospel to 
every creature, and these signs shall follow 
them that believe ; in My name shall they 
cast out devils." Acts v. 16. This verse 
will explain the meaning of devils : ' 'Bring- 
ing sick folks, and which were vexed with 
unclean spirits, and they were healed; every 
one." Unclean spirits is a figure here, 
meaning disease, such as fits, lunacy and 
bad cases of that nature. It does not mean 
the so-called orthodox devil. 

Mark xvi. 17, 18. "-They shall speak 
with new tongues. " Meaning another lang- 
uage, which was fulfilled on the day of 
pentecost. ' c They shall lay hands on the 
sick and they shall recover." 

In summing up this case for the world 
to consider, I have been careful in the con- 
sideration, in giving a true interpretation 
and application of the above questions. I 
have referred to Scripture for an answer. 
I have shown by Scripture the constitution 
of the New Testament, that the above 
questions rest upon. We cannot go back 
of the constitution of the New Testament, 
a system of laws, established form of spir- 



The New Birth. 161 

itual government for man to be governed 
by. I have shown what the new birth is. 
I have shown in harmony with the consti- 
tution what a man must do to secure the 
new birth by being born again. I have 
shown through a system of Bible laws 
w r hat a man must do after he is converted 
and born again. I have shown by this 
law the signs that follow them that are 
born again, and I have shown by this law 
that after being born again, that person is 
bound by this law to use every gift within 
him for the benefit of mankind. 

In view of what has been said in regard 
to this question, the Scriptures demonstrate 
with certainty, that Jesus Christ was the 
founder of the apostolic church, under the 
direction of God, and whatever system of 
laws were made to control and guide this 
church, was final, and never to be amended 
or altered by any religious creeds in the 
future ages to come. God established this 
church as the church to convert the world 
to its principle and doctrine; and all re- 
ligious creeds that preach any other gos- 
pel is, according to Scripture, apostacy. 

The great and wise apostle Paul speaks to 



162 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

the Gralatians as follows: i. 8, 9, Paul 
speaks with authority, and w^ith emphasis 
repeats this command over twice in force 
and to the point, saying, 1 1 But though we, 
or an angel from heaven, preach any other 
gospel unto you than that which we have 
preached unto you, let him be accursed. 
As w^e said before, so say I now again, If 
any man preach any other gospel unto you 
than that ye have received, let him be ac- 
cursed." 

In addition to what has been said, we 
will carry this question farther on, and 
consider the main points as the basis of 
the spiritual birth; we will detail and de- 
fine this subject to the elements that cre- 
ate the spiritual birth, and the process for 
man to perform to secure this birth. 

The first and only step for man to take 
to secure this birth is, he must leave off 
wicked habits, with an honest intention to 
reform, by obeying the law of God; by 
forming good habits, that his daily de- 
portment might be of such a character as 
to be recognized by God, and the man re- 
conciled to the law; and when reconciled 
to the law, the man is reconciled to Grod, 



The New Birth. 163 

and born again with the Spirit of God, 
through obedience and faith; by a genuine 
reformation the man secures the Spirit of 
God as a gift. Man cannot do anything to 
merit the Spirit of God, but man can do 
something to secure the Spirit of God as a 
gift, and to do that he must obey the law. 
This is work and faith on the part of man 
to secure the Spirit as a free gift, and also 
a reward for man for obedience to the law. 
How is this ? are you not off the track ? 
You say man can merit a reward for his 
obedience to the law of God, and at the 
same time cannot merit the Spirit of God; 
the one is to be got by work and faith, the 
other is the gift of God, and man cannot 
do anything to merit the Spirit. In answer 
I will say, The spiritual birth is righteous- 
ness, 'happiness in the man. What gener- 
ates this happiness ? The Spirit, the gift 
of God. Remember, the reward is the 
happiness of the man, which is meritorious 
in nature, making his obedience worthy of 
a reward. The free gift of the Spirit was 
the element that created this happiness in 
man, and this happiness was his reward, 
and not the Spirit. The Spirit, the God, 



164 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

was not the reward, it was what the Spirit, 
the God, gave man as a reward, his hap- 
piness. 

Matt. xix. 17: u And Jesus said to the 
young man, But if thou wilt enter into 
life, keep the commandments/ ' This Scrip- 
ture sums up the case, and is evidence of 
itself that man has a work to do — to keep 
the commandments; this, and this alone, 
makes man a fit subject, worthy of a re- 
ward, which is eternal life, and meritori- 
ous in its character. God and man co- 
operating together — God the principle, 
man to perform his part by obeying the 
commandments. The effect of obedience 
produces the reward, which is happiness 
and eternal life through the Spirit of God 
as a gift to man. Remember, the Spirit is 
not the reward; the Spirit is the principle 
that creates the reward for man through 
his obedience to the law, God and man co- 
operating together, each one performing 
his part. God is not to be bought or 
earned by what man can do; man can 
m$rit and earn a reward through obedi- 
ence; and the only way laid down in Scrip- 
ture for a man to secure a reward, the 



The New Birth, 165 

Spirit, a gift to man to co-operate with 
man, as co-workers together, to help man, 
that he may not lose his reward after he 
has earned it by obedience to God. If man 
cannot be meritorious in obeying the law, 
to secure life by obedience, then there is 
no force or meaning to Scripture; and any 
religious creed that says that man cannot 
merit life through keeping the command- 
ments, is wilfully misinterpreting Scrip- 
ture or ignorant of the true meaning of it. 

Question. What becomes of a man that 
goes into the spirit world, that has not re- 
ceived this birth through a reformation ? 
does he get a reward, as well as the man 
that was born again while in the mortal 
body ? 

Answer. That man does not get a re- 
ward, from the fact he has not done any- 
thing in obeying the law that he might be 
born again, and merit a reward in harmony 
with the law of justice and equity. Re- 
member, the purposes of Grod are all based 
upon the law of justice and equity, and 
no deviation from it. If this birth, secured 
through a reformation by obedience to the 
law while in the mortal body, is not se- 



166 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

cured in this life, it then is an eternal loss 
to the man, and impossible to secure a 
reward after passing into another exist- 
ence. Scripture says it must be got here 
or never. 

What then becomes of that soul that 
failed to be born again while in the body ? 
Let Paul answer the question. 

1 Cor. iii. 14, 15: "If any man's work 
abide which he hath built thereupon," 
meaning the law of Grod, the foundation, 
"he shall receive a reward; if any man's 
work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss; 
but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by 
fire." 

The proper interpretation of the above 
Scripture is, as I understand it, as fol- 
lows : A man in this life that is obedi- 
ent to the law, is proof of itself that the 
man's work is good, and worthy of a re- 
ward, and receives a reward. A man that 
builds upon this law, the foundation, not 
in harmony with its demands, through 
obedience, is evidence of itself that his 
work is not good, and shall be burned; 
that is, be punished for not obeying the law. 
This man suffers a loss. What loss ? The 



The New Birth. 167 

loss of a reward, but the man as an entity 
will be saved, yet so as by fire. The fig- 
ure means punishment, limited in dura- 
tion, for the purpose of purifying the 
soul, putting it in a condition to be saved 
under the redeemable law provided into 
the sacrifice that Christ made for the en- 
tire race of man. One class to be made 
happy through obedience, a reward ; the 
other class to be made happy by punish- 
ment. The one gets a reward, whose works 
are not burned ; the other loses a reward, 
whose works are burned — one saved by 
reformation, the other through punish- 
ment. 



CHAPTER VIII. 



HEAVEN AND HELL. 



IN considering the question of heaven and 
hell, as stated in different parts of the 
Bible, we should be very careful in giving 
a proper interpretation, applicable and in 
harmony with the true meaning of this 
question at issue. The question of heaven 
and hell is a complication, involving differ- 
ent things, and in this condition we must 
consider it in its true light. In the first 
place we find in Scripture that the words 
heaven and hell are figurative, and must be 
considered as such, used in different alle- 
gories touching this question. 

The first heaven and hell for us to con- 
sider, is the one that man creates in his 
soul, through his daily conduct. God in 
His wisdom has given man a will power to 
make a choice between two things; this 
will power is deity to man's nature, from 
the fact that Grod, by His law, will not in-, 
terfere with a person's choice. In this con- 



Heaven and Hell. 169 

dition it is entirely left to man, whether 
he will have the kingdom of heaven within 
or the kingdom of hell within. 

Webster's definition of hell is, a place or 
state of punishment ; the abode of evil 
spirits. This definition is without founda- 
tion. Nowhere in Scripture is it stated 
that Grod created a hell. But Revelation 
does say that God created all things, and by 
Him all things exist. Hence, if there was 
a located hell created by God, it would be 
mentioned in Scripture ; it is a manufac- 
tured word. Mention is made in Scripture 
of heaven and hades ; and the holy city, 
New Jerusalem, L ' With streets of gold and 
gates of pearl, and of a bottomless pit," 
and ' 4 outer darkness ;" 4 'and of the saved 
and the wailings of the lost. " In the consid- 
eration of this, it is spoken in general terms, 
figurative in their use, and not in specific 
language, and in view of this, we must in- 
terpret and apply this allegory where it 
belongs. The New Jerusalem and heaven 
is to be applied on this earth as the church 
of God. The c ' bottomless pit " and 4t outei 
darkness," and t4 the w^ailings of the lost,' 
is a strong figure to represent the destruction 

11 



170 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

of the principle of the apostaey and ene- 
mies of the church, and accomplished from 
one dispensation to another on the earth. 

Bible reveals but very little concerning 
the future life. It does teach plainly that 
man will live beyond the grave, but gives 
no detail of what is meant by ; ; living 
again." Here man is left in the dark, as 
to the special conditions, employments and 
pleasures of the life in the immortal exist- 
ence. Paul says that the things which 
4 ; God hath prepared for those who love 
Him," are beyond the power of description 
or of imagination. But in the consideration 
of this, it is simply bewildering to our com- 
prehension. Theory after theory has been 
formed by man, but the theories have been 
as various as the men who formed them, 
and have borne the coloring of the personal 
desires of those who drew them. 

But we will return to our subject, hell. 
Is there a hell located somewhere for the 
abode of evil spirits of man, a place of 
eternal punishment ? The principles that 
govern Scripture, the basis of revelation, 
deny the doctrine of a located hell, as ad- 
vocated by some religious institutions of 



Heaven and Hell. 171 

the present age. It is an unnatural pro- 
duction, demoralizing to man, and the 
means of filling the world with atheist and 
infidels. 

When a learned theologian, that is versed 
in Scripture, declares to man that Scripture 
teaches a located hell in the immortal ex- 
istence, for the abode and punishment of 
lost souls, never to be released from that 
hell, mark that theologian and observe him 
closely, and you will see the mark gen- 
erated in his countenance of a Pharisee and 
a hireling, made by himself. Man never 
was born, and never will be, that can prove 
by Scripture that there is a hell, as stated 
above. All through the Bible the word 
hell is often used as a figure to illustrate 
the condition of a person or persons, or na- 
tion. Hell was used as a figure in the case 
of the king, Nebuchadnezzar, in regard to 
his downfall. Notice first the high position 
this king occupied, then notice the low con- 
dition after his fall. 

Daniel ii. 37, 38. cc Thou, O king, art 
a king of kings ; for the God of heaven 
hath given thee a kingdom ; power, and 
strength and glory, and 'wheresoever the 



172 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

children of men dwell, the beasts of the 
field and the fowls of the heaven hath He 
given into thine hand, and hath made thee 
ruler over them all, thou art the head of 
gold. 7 ' In this revelation we learn that 
this king was made ruler over the entire 
earth, and all things subject to him. 

We will now turn to another portion of 
Scripture, giving the downfall of this king: 

Isaiah xiv. 12. 4t How art thou fallen 
from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morn- 
ing ; how art thou cut down to the ground, 
which didst weaken the nations. " 

Verse 16. "They that see thee, shall 
narrowly look upon thee, and consider 
thee, saying : Is this the man that made the 
earth to tremble, that did shake king- 
doms V 

What man ? King Nebuchadnezzar was 
the Lucifer that fell from heaven, from his 
highly exalted position that gave him in 
Dan. ii. 37, 38. This king is the man that 
fell down to hell, (meaning the degraded, 
miserable condition in his fall,) and a com- 
panion of the beasts of the field, to eat 
grass with the oxen. It says, hell was 
moved beneath to meet this king in his 



Heaven and Hell. 173 

fall. That is, the chief ones that were 
miserable and weak, they cast it in his 
teeth, t4 Art thou also become weak and in 
hell as we are ?" Heaven and hell in this 
case is a figure to illustrate the condition 
of this king here on this earth. 

Does this king, a man who is called 
Lucifer, look as if he was an angel, and 
rebelled in heaven, and God threw him out, 
and behold, perhaps he might have landed 
on this earth through a mistake, and be- 
come what some people say, a devil, right 
from heaven. 

Rev. xii. 12. ct Therefore rejoice, ye 
heavens, and ye that dwell in them; woe to 
the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea, 
for the devil is comedown unto you, having 
great wrath, because he knoweth that he 
hath but a short time. 71 I wonder if the 
devil is going to die, as he hath but a short 
time. I think he will die, Revelation says 
he will die. In Genesis, when God cursed 
the devil, " Upon thy belly shalt thou go, 
and dust shalt thou eat all the days of 
thy life.' 1 This is a strong hint that he has 
got to die. This is too bad that he has got 
to die, after helping God to get the eyes of 



174 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

Adam and Eve opened, so as to be in con- 
dition to people the earth, so as to carry 
out the purpose of God. This is the way 
a great many people interpret Scripture, 
by the ignorance taught them by the 
apostacy of this and the past ages. 

All the above Scripture is an allgory, a 
figurative speech, a parable, and must be 
so understood. The God of this universe 
never created a located hell nor a located 
heaven for the abode of the souls of men. 
Outside the entity of man, Revelation 
teaches man that heaven and hell are fig- 
urative in speech ; meaning the condition 
of the soul of man. The soul is the loca- 
tion for happiness, which is heaven ; the 
soul is the location for misery, which is 
hell, Nowhere in Scripture, when it has a 
true interpretation, does it teach that 
heaven and hell is a location outside of 
man, for the abode of the spirit of man. 
It is a condition of the soul, and also a lo- 
cation for the same, and wherever hell is 
mentioned in Scripture, it means misery 
every time, in man directly or indirectly. 
The same is applied to heaven; an honest 
man has heaven within as a condition, a 



Heaven and Hell, 175 

dishonest man has hell within as a condi- 
tion, and makes the location within man, 
and not without. 

I will present another heaven : 

Isaiah xxxiv. 4, 5. 4% And all the host 
of heaven shall be dissolved, and the 
heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll ; 
and all their host shall fall down, as the 
leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a fall- 
ing fig from the fig tree ; for my sword shall 
be bathed in heaven ; behold, it shall come 
down upon Idumea and upon the people of 
my curse, to judgment/' 

If this Scripture is literal in its meaning, 
and this heaven is a location, then, accord- 
ing to this word, heaven and the heavens, 
and the host thereof shall be dissolved, and 
the universe annihilated, and nothing left 
only Grod. But this heaven is not a loca- 
tion, it is an allegory, and must be so in- 
terpreted. 

We will consider the true meaning of 
this allegory. The element contained in 
this allegory is severe. The prophecy con- 
tained in this allegory spoken by the 
prophet Isaiah, is in regard to the true 
church of Christ, and the apostacy and 



176 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible, 

enemies arrayed against it. We find this 
same prophecy in Revelations, spoken by 
John. This prophecy, according to Scrip- 
ture, will not be fulfilled in this Gentile 
age, but will be accomplished in the next 
age, — the millennial and the angelic age. 

The struggle and battle between the 
church and its enemies has been going on 
ever since the establishment of it by Jesus 
Christ, through the new covenant, and it 
will continue on until the church comes off 
victorious, through the destruction of its 
enemy, which is sin, and the effect of it 
in the souls of them that persecuted the 
true church of Christ, and the man that 
sinned on high places as well as low, will 
be tried as by fire, and that hell and its 
evil works in the soul of man will be de- 
stroyed. But he himself will be saved 
through the justice of God, by being pun- 
ished according to the deeds done in the 
body. 

Ezekielxxxi. 16, 18. Hell in this Scrip- 
ture is a figure, which makes it a condi- 
tion: tc I have made the nations to shake 
at the sound of his fall, when I cast him 
down to hell with them that descend into 



Heaven ana Hell. 177 

the pit." Verse 18: tc This is Pharaoh 
and all his multitude, saith the Lord God." 
Hell spoken of here is the downfall of 
Pharaoh and his multitude. The down- 
fall of anyone through their sin is misery 
of a low character, meaning hell within. 
The uplifting of a man through obedience 
to the law of God is heaven within — a con- 
dition, and not a location. 

Luke xvi. In this chapter we find a par- 
able spoken by Jesus Christ. In this para- 
ble we find the word hell used very forci- 
bly; and if the language was literal in its 
character, it would sustain a located hell; 
but being it is metaphorical in its charac- 
ter, and a parable, it must have its inter- 
pretation accordingly. 

We find by careful study of Scripture, 
that this parable has reference to the two 
covenants, the Jewish covenant and the 
New Testament covenant. According to 
Scripture the Jewish covenant was the let- 
ter, death and hell, as the three words 
mean one thing. Why is this so ? Be- 
cause the writers of the New Testament 
tell us that there is no spiritual life in the 
Jewish covenant outside the Ten Com- 



178 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

mandments. They say it was the letter, 
which is death and hell according to the 
terms of Scripture. 

We find in this parable, the rich man 
died, and in hell he lifted up his eyes, be- 
ing in torment, and seeth Abraham afar 
off, and Lazarus in his bosom. c 4 And it 
came to pass that the beggar died, and was 
carried by the angels into Abraham's 
bosom.' 1 The rich man in this parable 
represents the Jewish covenant. He was 
in misery, which was hell. There was no 
spiritual life in him, and in this hell of 
misery he cried for a drop of water to cool 
his tongue. And this is the case with the 
Jewish covenant, It was abolished, it 
died and was buried, and in hell lifted up 
its eyes. Who are those that lift up their 
eyes to-day ? The Jews as a nation, who 
still worship the old covenant. Misery 
and hell are the contents of that covenant 
that is dead and buried, never to have a 
resurrection. 

The beggar represented in this parable 
stands for the new covenant, where there 
is spiritual life, and the kingdom of heaven 
within. The seed, the representative of 



Heaven and Hell. 179 

the new covenant, came from father Abra- 
ham. And as the beggar is represented 
in the bosom of Abraham, so was the seed 
of the new covenant promised to Abraham, 
to be established in the proper time. We 
find in this parable a great gulf fixed be- 
tween the rich man and the beggar, which 
prevents them from coming together. This 
is the condition of the two covenants; there 
is a great gulf fixed between them. What 
is meant by this gulf between them ? Let 
the Scripture answer. Paul tells us in 
Hebrews, that the Jewish covenant was 
imperfect, and there w r as no spiritual life 
in it, for it was the letter, death and hell. 
There was spiritual life in the Ten Com- 
mandments, but not in the Jewish covenant 
of ordinances. If the Jews had been 
obedient to the Ten Commandments, they 
w r ould have been justified by God, regard- 
less of the covenant. But they obeyed the 
covenant, and not the commandments, and 
by doing so they were the means of their 
own downfall, and drank the cup that 
they stepped from, the contents of the old 
covenant, w r hich was the letter, death and 
hell; and to-day the Jews as a people are 



180 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible, 

drinking the same cup by worshipping the 
same old covenant in this land of ours, 
which contains the same deadly poison 
from the contents of the letter, death and 
hell. This represents the rich man in the 
parable. 

The new covenant is represented in this 
parable through the beggar. The beggar 
in the bosom of Abraham was contented 
in his condition, for in it he found right- 
eousness and peace to his soul, spiritual 
life, the contents of the new covenant. It 
was heaven, and not hell. What a wide 
difference there is between happiness and 
misery — heaven and hell. This is the rea- 
son that God fixed a great gulf between the 
two. By the law of God the two covenants 
cannot be mixed together any more than 
heaven and hell; one is dead, while the 
other liveth; one is buried, while the other 
is resurrected. Just as long as the Jews 
as a people worship the old covenant, they 
will be as the rich man, lifting up 
their eyes in hell, never able to get a 
drop of water to cool their tongue, and 
never get into a condition to cross that gulf 
until they forsake and forever bury the old 



Heaven and Hell. 181 

covenant, and accept the new covenant of 
Jesus Christ, which will bring to them the 
water of life; and when this is accepted, 
and death and hell buried by them, then 
they will pass over this great gulf through 
the spirit and power of the new covenant. 

Genesis xv. 5: lt And he brought him 
forth abroad, and said, Look now toward 
heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able 
to number them/ 7 In this interview be- 
tween God and Abraham, we learn from 
the contents of it that heaven in this case 
is space, and cannot be measured. If man can 
measure the universe and comprehend, the 
greatness of God, he then will be able to 
measure heaven. 

Jer. xxiii. 24: iC Do not I fill heaven and 
earth, saith the Lord." This Scripture, to 
me, is plain enough to satisfy the world 
that heaven cannot be measured, for wher- 
ever God is, heaven is. 

Jer. xxxi. 37: t4 Thus saith the Lord, If 
heaven above can be measured, and the 
foundations of, the earth searched out be- 
neath, I will also cast off all the seed of 
Israel for all that they have done, saith 
the Lord. 77 This is a plain statement from 
God, that heaven cannot be measured. 



182 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

Genesis i. We must consider the most of 
this creation an allegory. It says here that 
God created heaven and earth, and created 
a firmament in the midst of the waters to 
divide the waters from the waters, and 
then called the firmament heaven, which 
is space. This writer must have made a 
mistake, for space, which is called heaven 
here, is not an entity. God cannot create 
nothing. God creates entities. It must 
be something; so we will have to take this 
creation and consider it for what it is 
worth. 

2 Peter iii. 10: tc The heavens shall pass 
away with a great noise, and the elements 
shall melt with fervent heat; the earth 
also and the works that are therein shall 
be burned up. 7 ' If this Scripture is to be 
understood in its literal sense, then every- 
thing in the universe will be destroyed ex- 
cept God. This is a very forcible allegory. 
Whatever takes place through the inter- 
pretation of this allegory will be severe in 
its character. The second epistle of Peter 
was placed by Eusebius among the dis- 
puted books, as not being canonical; but 
it was received into the canon by the coun- 



Heaven and Hell. 183 

oils of Laodieea (a. d. 372) and Carthage 
(a. d. 397), and it lias many points of con- 
tact with the first epistle, and with those 
of St. Paul, 

The New Testament doctrine, under the 
authority of the new covenant, informs us 
that there is a great spiritual battle being 
fought in this world between right and 
wrong, heaven and hell, happiness and 
misery. Heaven and happiness is the life 
principle of the new covenant, while mis- 
ery, death and hell are the seed of Adam's 
transgression and the imperfection of the 
Jewish covenant. By careful examination 
of Scripture, we find in its contents this 
battle going on between good and evil, the 
true church of Christ under the constitu- 
tion of the new covenant. The principle 
contained in the new covenant commands 
the church to array itself in battle and 
fight this spiritual battle, with God to the 
front, to subdue and annihilate evil and 
the effects upon the souls of men in this 
w r orld and in the spirit world. And while 
this battle is going on, we find the apos- 
tacy and enemies of the church arrayed 
in battle against it, lying and persecuting 



184 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

the church of Christ through the lust of 
an evil soul, nursed by evil thoughts by it, 
it generated the tempter, the devil, in man, 
for in this condition, by the terms of Scrip- 
ture, man becomes his own devil, as a con- 
dition within himself, and by the power 
that Grod gave him he can, if he will, de- 
stroy the devil within by obedience to the 
law of Grod. We find this battle very se- 
vere, as the picture portrayed in this alle- 
gory is of a great magnitude. The church 
has the promise from God that they will 
win the battle and come off victorious by 
strict obedience to the law of Grod. The 
apostacy and enemies of the church is of 
great magnitude, and will fight until blood 
follows their path through the blindness 
of their souls; and as we find the picture 
in this allegory portrayed to us through 
figures, so it will be in this spiritual battle 
between good and evil. The honest man 
and woman with a true conversion, the 
new birth, by being obedient to the law of 
Grod through faith, is the true church of 
Christ, and the only one that will be ac- 
knowledged by Grod. That church will be 
victorious, and in this battle, with Grod to 



Heaven and Hell. 185 

the front, will destroy and annihilate sin 
and evil, which in a figure in Scripture is 
termed the devil, it will leave it neither 
root nor branch. But the Spirit and power 
of God through the punishment due the 
sinner, will eradicate sin and all the effects 
of it from the souls of the race, and be 
made pure and white as snow. As the 
picture in this allegory, so will be the pic- 
ture of this battle. And as the heavens 
pass away with a great noise, and the 
elements melt with fervent heat, and the 
earth and the w x orks therein burn up, so 
it will be in this battle ; there will be 
neither root nor branch left of evil and its 
effects upon the souls of the race after this 
battle is finished. 



12 



CHAPTER IX. 



HEAVEN AND HELL. 



WHEN will be the end of this struggle be- 
tween these two powerful elements, 
let the prophecy of Scripture answer. This 
battle, according to Scripture, will not end 
on this earth until the last human soul is 
born from a woman, then it will end ; when 
evil has no more subjects to fight. 

What age of this world will this be ac- 
complished in ; this Gentile age ? No. In 
the next age, called the millennial ? No. 
It will be the next age after the millennial, 
called the angelic age. 

As Adam fell from a condition of purity 
and brought spiritual death into the world, 
through disobedience of the law of God, 
so must the second Adam, Jesus Christ, re- 
store the race in the original condition of 
purity, according to the constitution of the 
new covenant. Scripture informs us that 
the mission of Jesus Christ upon this earth, 
was to destroy death, which is sin ; the 



Heaven and Hell. 187 

curse upon the race. This must be done 
on this earth in some age, which will be 
the angelic age. If this is not accomplished 
on this earth, as long as man is born from 
a women, then the mission of Jesus Christ 
w r ill be a failure. 

The blood of Christ means something in 
its magnitude. The germ of the living 
principle in the constitution of the new 
covenant is the word of God. And as in 
Adam all die, so in Christ, the second 
Adam, all will be made alive. How \ By 
the blood of Christ, the kingdom of God, 
in the consummation of all things to Him- 
self ; through the conversion and the re- 
demption of the race from sin ; through 
the development and progression of the 
race, to that condition that Adam enjoyed 
before he fell. 

St. Luke xxi. 24. c c And Jerusalem shall 
be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the 
times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." 

Romans xi. 25. ct Blindness in part is 
happened to Israel, until the fullness of the 
Gentiles be come in ; and so all Israel shall 
be saved." 

Scripture informs us that the race will 



188 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

grow worse in sin than heretofore, until the 
end of the Gentile age, and the beginning 
of the reformation, in the millennial age. 

The contents of the old Jewish covenant 
which is death and hell, as to the letter, 
will be destroyed at the end of this Gentile 
age, by the conversion of the Jews as a peo- 
ple, to the doctrine of the new covenant. 
They will forsake their old covenant and 
bury it forever, and be annihilated in its 
second death, which will be the end of that 
death and hell, which was the contents, the 
letter, and not spirit life in the old cove- 
nant. And so all Israel shall be saved from 
that death, in the liberty and enjoyment of 
the new covenant. 

We will now follow the kingdom of 
Christ in the next age, which will be the 
age of reformation, and all the religions of 
the world will be dissolved into one relig- 
ion. That will be the religion that Christ 
established under the constitution of the 
new covenant. In this reformation all the 
kingdoms of this world will become the 
kingdom of Jesus Christ. In that age Christ 
will plead the cause of the poor and needy, 
and will subdue the oppressor. As it reads 



Heaven and Hell. 189 

in Sam% lxxii. ct He shall judge the poor 
of the people, He shall save the children of 
the needy, and shall break in pieces the 
oppressor. " ' c He shall have dominion 
also from sea to sea, and from the river 
unto the ends of the earth ; yea, all 
kings shall fall down before Him, all na- 
tions shall serve Him, for He shall de- 
liver the needy when he crieth, the poor 
also, and him that hath no helper." 
Isaiah ii. 4 to the end of chapter : 
4 c And He shall judge among the nations, 
and shall rebuke many people ; and they 
shall beat their swords into plowshares, 
and their spears into pruninghooks ; nation 
shall not lift up sword against nation, 
neither shall they learn war any more. 7 ' 

This will be the condition in this refor- 
mation in the next age, which will be a 
higher development of the nations, than 
at the present age. The nations of the 
earth to-day never were better prepared 
with implements of war, then they are at 
the present time, and while in this condition 
the nations of the earth are getting more 
civilized in the affairs of this kind, by set- 
tling their troubles through arbitration, 



190 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

and at the same time there is not the con- 
fidence between the nations that should 
be. But a fear upon the brow of the na- 
tions, and a deep silent meditation as to 
what will come next. Oh, nations of the 
the earth, is this hell within ? It is. But 
it will be destroyed in the next age, through 
the principle of the new covenant, and the 
development of the race under its instruc- 
tion. 

In the next age the lofty looks of man 
shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of 
men shall be bowed down, and the Lord 
alone shall be exalted in that day or age. 
And the secret sin of the oppressor to the 
poor, and sin committed in high stations 
of life as well as the low, will be destroyed 
by the spirit of God, and man made a fit 
subject for God to sit upon the throne of 
the souls of the race. Born again in the 
spiritual kingdom of Jesus Christ, under 
the power of the next age. 

The kingdom of Christ will be more pow- 
erful in its operations in the soul of man 
in the next age than in the present one. 
The infinite purpose of God from the be- 
ginning to the end, must be carried out in 



Heaven and Hell. 191 

harmony with His plan. His church must 
and will be protected by the strong arm of 
of His power. A mother may forget her 
sucking child, born from her womb, yet 
will I not forget my church. C4 I have 
sworn, and it has gone out of my mouth, 
and will not return void, that the oppres- 
sor of the poor, and the thief and the sin- 
ner cannot tread the paths in the kingdom 
of the church of Christ, until he is born 
again in obedience to the law." 

1 Cor. vi. 9. "Know ye not that the 
unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom 
of God, be not deceived/' 

1 Cor. xv. 50. 44 Flesh and blood cannot 
inherit the kingdom of God." 

The unrighteous man, in the terms of the 
terms of the law of God, is a bastard to the 
kingdom of heaven, and to become an heir 
of God, and joint heir of Jesus Christ, the 
sinner must inherit this heirship in the 
kingdom of heaven, through obedience to 
the law of God. That is, repent and be 
born with the spirit of God, in harmony 
with the conditions of the new covenant. 
When this is done, the hell that once was 
the guest of his soul is, now destroyed by 



192 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

the spirit of Grod, and made a fit subject for 
the kingdom of heaven to dwell in, which 
makes him by law, an heir to Grod. The 
unrighteous man cannot inherit this, 
neither can flesh or blood. Only the spirit 
of man can possess it, through the con- 
ditions of the law of Grod, who must wor- 
ship Him in spirit and in truth. But while 
man is in his unrighteous state he cannot 
inherit the kingdom of Grod, for heaven 
and hell cannot live together in the soul of 
man. One or the other must go, and it is 
left to man whether he will be a spiritual 
bastard to God, or an heir to the kingdom 
of heaven, through obedience. 

The death in the Jewish covenant will 
have its final destruction in the next age. 
But death and hell under Adam's trans- 
gression will have its final 'destruction in 
the angelic age, for that is the mission of 
Christ on this earth. 

1 Cor. xv. 25. ct For He must reign till 
he hath put all enemies under His feet. " 

Verse 26. tc The last enemy that shall 
be destroyed is death." This death means 
hell within, and all evil and its effects 
upon the souls of the race, from Adam 
down to the last man born on this earth. 



Heaven and Hell. 193 

Verse 28. 4; And when all things shall 
be subdued unto Him, then shall the son 
also Himself be subject unto Him that put 
all things under Him, that Grod may be all 
in all." 

Christ will accomplish this in the angelic 
age, before He delivers up the kingdom to 
His father. This includes those that have 
passed into the spirit world, under the con- 
demnation of sin. Redemption will not end 
on this earth with the unconverted. If 
this was true, then Christ could never fill 
His mission, and be able to destroy the last 
enemy, which is death, meaning evil and its 
effects upon the souls of men in this world 
and in the spirit world; If there is no re- 
demption beyond the grave for man, then 
it is impossible for Christ to redeem the 
race from Adam's transgression. 4 ' For as 
in Adam all die, even so inChiist shall all 
be made alive. " This is plain. Whatever is 
lost in Adam must be made up in Christ, 
or there is no meaning and force to Scrip- 
ture. 

What did Adam bring on an unborn in- 
nocent race ? It was evil spiritual death. 

St. Johnxviii. 36. " My kingdom is not 
of this world." 



194 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

God is the spirit and power of this king- 
dom, called the kingdom of God. It is a 
spiritual kingdom, not of this world, but 
of the spirit world. This kingdom is the 
word of God, for God is the word. This 
word is established in the new covenant, 
through Jesus Christ as the medium be- 
tween God and man. 

Matt, xxviii. 18: t4 All power is given 
unto me in heaven and in earth." Scrip- 
ture is plain as to this question, that the 
kingdom of Christ, which is the kingdom 
of God, extends into the spirit world called 
heaven with its redeeming power to save 
lost souls from the effects of sin and the 
death that .Adam brought on the race. 
When Jesus said that all power was given 
unto Him in heaven and in earth, He did 
not mean to have the race understand that 
it was given to Him as a man, for Jesus 
says, tc I can of myself do nothing;" I. am 
a man, and born for a purpose. That pur- 
pose was to give to the world the word 
which is spirit, the force and power of the 
redeeming element incorporated into the 
constitution of the new covenant, which is 
God, the Saviour of the world. A great 



Heaven ana Hell. 195 

many people think that Jesus is the Sav- 
iour. Oh, blind man of the earth, read 
for yourself, and be not led by the blind- 
ness of some of the pulpits of this land. 

1 Tim. iv. 10: "We trust in the living 
God, who is the Saviour of all men," not 
of a selected few, but all of Adam's race. 
The spirit and power of the new covenant 
is the Saviour, w r ho is the spirit and power 
of the new covenant. It is God, who man- 
ifested himself in the flesh through the 
medium, Jesus Christ, reconciling the 
world to himself; God, the redeeming 
power, who has sworn to himself, and the 
word has gone out of his mouth, and will 
not return void, that every soul of the race 
that has been stung with sin through Ad- 
am's transgression shall be redeemed from 
death, hell and the grave, that last enemy 
of man. That blood of my spotless Son must 
accomplish that which I purposed to be 
before the foundation of the world, and 
what is not done in this mortal existence 
must be done in the immortal existence, 
that God may be all in all. When God is 
in a man he is redeemed, and when God is 
in all, as it reads in 1 Cor. xv. 28, then all 



196 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible, 

will be redeemed, and the race made one 
happy family. 

1 Peter iv. 6 : iL For this cause was the 
gospel preached also to them that are dead, 
that they might be judged according to 
men in the flesh, but live according to God 
in the spirit.' 7 Chap. iii. 19: ct By which 
also he went," that is, Christ, 4t and 
preached unto the spirits in prison." A 
dark and wicked spirit that leaves the body 
and goes into the spirit world, is in a 
prison, a hell within the spirit. This spirit 
will remain in that condition until re- 
deemed through this gospel that was and 
is being preached to them by angel spirits 
in the spirit world. Judgment is going on 
in both worlds at the same time. When 
Christ preached to those spirits in the spirit 
world, it was after he was crucified ; he 
judged them as he did men in the flesh, 
who were not dead, and commanded the 
spirits to live according to God in the spirit, 
because they were spirits, and had to wor- 
ship God as spirits, for they had given up 
the flesh, and were called dead through 
this change. 

Scripture speaks about another kind of 



Heaven and Hell. 197 

dead. Eph. v. 14: "Wherefore he saith, 
Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from 
the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. " 
Scripture considers every man that is liv- 
ing in sin, and not converted to the claims 
of the gospel, asleep, and dead to the 
light of the Spirit. But the dead I re- 
ferred to in Peter is not of this kind of 
dead. The dead that Peter refers to are 
those that have passed out of the body, 
and are now called spirits, and they as 
spirits must accept the gospel in the spirit 
world, and all brought to the light, that 
God may be all and in all. This is what 
Christ shed his blood for, to redeem every 
son and daughter of the race from the con- 
dition of hell to the condition of heaven; 
and if one soul should fall short of this 
and be lost, the hosts of heaven would be 
daaped in mourning, and their heaven 
turned into a hell, until that soul would 
be brought into the fold and family of Grod. 
Heaven and hell will run side by side as 
a condition until the last soul be brought 
into the light, which will be in the pre- 
formation in the angelic age. 

Isaiah lxv. 17: "For behold I create 



198 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

new heavens and a new earth, and the 
former shall not be remembered, nor come 
into mind. " This is a metaphor to illus- 
trate the new dispensation, or world, the 
angelic age. Verse 18 : 4 " But be ye glad and 
rejoice forever in that which I create; for 
behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and 
her people a joy.' 7 Jerusalem spoken of 
here means the church of God, and the 
prosperity of the church and the rejoicing 
of the people under the administration of 
the angelic age. Verse 19: ik And I will 
rejoice in Jerusalem and joy in my people; 
and the voice of weeping shall be no more 
heard in her, nor the voice of crying. 7 ' 
That will be the prosperity in the angelic 
age in the church of God, when God will 
rejoice in his church, and wipe away all 
sorrow and weeping from his children, and 
extend peace to her like a river, that they 
may suck and be satisfied with the breasts 
of her consolation; that ye may milk out 
and be delighted with the abundance of 
her glory. 77 Verse 20: "There shall be 
no more thence an infant of days, nor an 
old man that hath not filled his days; for 
the child shall die an hundred years old, 



Heaven and Hell. 199 

but the sinner being an hundred years old 
shall be accursed. " Verse 21. L 4 And they 
shall build houses, and inhabit them, and 
they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit 
of them. " In that age the people will be so 
developed in mind as to understand the laws 
of nature, and be as obedient to its claims, 
which will bring them into a condition to 
be more pure and spiritualized in soul and 
body, which will make them subjects for 
long lives on this earth, and less offspring. 
Yerse 22: " They shall not build, and an- 
other inhabit; they shall not plant, and 
another eat; for as the days of a tree are 
the days of my people, and mine elect shall 
long enjoy the work of their hands." The 
reformation in that age will be so well exe- 
cuted that it will turn the prisons into 
houses of prayer; thieves and murderers 
will be transformed into angels of light; 
you can build and inhabit ; you can 
plant and eat, and no wicked son or 
daughter will be there to molest you ; 
you can sit under your own vine, and 
enjoy and suck from the breasts of the 
church, and be satisfied with its conso- 
lations. Verse 24: "And it shall come 



200 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

to pass that before they call, I will an. 
swer; and while they are yet speaking, 
I will hear." Oh, nations of the earth, it 
has not yet entered into the heart of man 
what God has in store for a redeemed race 
beyond the grave, where there will be no 
more sorrow, but peace and joy in the bo- 
som of our Father, God, never to be sepa- 
rated. -Verse 25 : c ' The wolf and the lamb 
shall feed together, and the lion shall eat 
straw like the bullock, and dust shall be 
the serpent's meat; they shall not hurt or 
destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the 
Lord." In that age the race will be trans- 
formed into angels, and sin and death de- 
stroyed, which will make the dust for the 
serpent's meat. 

1 Cor. xv. 24-26: 4t Then cometh the end, 
when he shall have delivered up the king- 
dom to God, even the Father, when he shall 
have put down all rule and all authority 
and power. " 

When Jesus delivers up the kingdom to 
God, as stated here, it will be in the an- 
gelic age, as soon as the last enemy is de- 
stroyed, which is death. Death is evil, 
called devil and hell through figures in 



Heaven and Hell. 201 

Scripture. Who are they that are stamped 
with this death ? It is those that have 
not been converted by obeying the gospel. 
Are there not millions of souls in the spirit 
world stamped with this death that Jesns 
must destroy ? 

It is evident that the print of death is in 
the souls of a large class of departed spir- 
its. Jesus says he must destroy that death 
before He can deliver up the kingdom to 
God. Every human soul that this earth 
ever gave birth to, either in this world or 
the spirit world, must be purified and 
brought to God, through the blood that 
Jesus shed to seal the new covenant, which 
contained the word, the spirit and the 
power of God, who speaks in the power of 
His majesty that the blood of His spotless 
son must and shall conquer the last enemy, 
which is death, through the power He had 
given Him. Then when sin and its evil 
effects upon the souls of the race shall be 
obliterated from them, and the race all 
brought in the fold of God, that God may 
be all and in all, then shall the son deliver 
up the kingdom to God. Then Jesus will 
finish His mission, and become subject to 
God, His father. 

13 



CHAPTER X. 



PROBATION. 



PROBATION is a proof. Moral trial of 
a person who is a probationer upon 
trial, while passing through this mortal ex- 
istence as a finite being. 

There are some very important questions 
in regard to this case, for our considera- 
tion, before we arrive at certain conclu- 
sions, so as to enable us to make a reason- 
able decision, that will harmonize with rea- 
son and Scripture. 

Does probation for man cease at the 
grave, or is man a probationer through 
the mortal existence and the immortal 
existence ? Scripture teaches us that pro- 
bation for man ceases at the grave, 
and reasonable in the minds of the cul-. 
tured and developed persons of the present 
age. If man, as a probationer, remains so 
in the immortal existence, we are then 
forced to the conclusion that man, in the 
immortal existence is a sinner, and can 



Probation. 203 

commit sin, and on trial as a probationer 
in that existence as well as this mortal ex- 
istence. 

Justice demands of us to give this ques- 
tion an impartial investigation from the 
standpoint of Scripture and reason, as it is 
a very important and weighty subject for 
the consideration of man. 

Scripture teaches us that there are two ex- 
istences for man to exist in as an entity. 
The first existence mortal, and the second 
existence immortal. Reason and Scripture 
teaches man that God had a plan and pur- 
pose in the creation of man and his con- 
dition, that he must pass through in both 
worlds, so as to cultivate and round man 
out, in harmony with the purpose of God. 

There are two sides to this subject, to be 
considered by man. The first point for man 
to consider is this : Man had to be created 
as an entity to begin his existence. God, 
in His infinite wisdom, made man of the 
earth, and to propagate the race in har- 
mony with His law, which makes man a 
mortal being, made in a mortal world, and 
gives man a mortal existence while a sub- 
ject of this world. 



204 Dager^s Interpretation of the Bible. 

One important point for man to consider 
is this : What did God make man for ? 
Is there any way for man to know, that is 
positive and certain ? There is not. For 
God's ways, and thoughts and wisdom are 
past finding out by man. Then, if this be 
the condition, what must man resort to, 
to come to a reasonable conclusion as to 
what man was made for ? There is but one 
foundation for man to build upon, and that 
is reason and revelation. We have a rev- 
elation in Scripture, and in harmony with 
the reason of man, for what God made man 
for. and the conditions for man to pass> 
through in the mortal and the immortal 
existence. 

As we examine revelation we find man a 
compound being, a spirit and a body. The 
body called a tabernacle for the spirit to 
abide in for a limited time. The spirit is 
the entity, and not the body. The body is 
the clothing for the spirit while in its mor- 
tal existence. When the spirit enters into 
immortal existence, it then lays off this 
body of clothing to return to dust, as 
being no part of the entity of man, it could 
not by law, pass with the spirit into the im- 



Probation. 205 

mortal existence. The spirit entity is the 
man. Was man a conscious entity prior 
to the conception of the body in the womb ? 
Revelation and reason teach us that the 
spirit entity of man commenced its exist- 
ence when conception took place. This is in 
harmony with the revelation found in the 
Bible, that God gave man in regard to His 
entity as a conscious being. Was this spirit 
entity made a finite entity or an infinite en- 
tity ? Revelation informs us that man was 
made a finite entity. And Paul and the 
writers of Scripture confirm that the spirit 
entity, the man is finite in nature, and made 
imperfect, subject to vanity and sin, and re- 
sponsible to God for his acts, according to 
the law written on his heart and conscience, 
and also a code of laws in the revelation 
of Scripture. And in view of this, revela- 
tion makes man a probationer, on trial to 
test his conduct. Let it be good or bad, 
while in mortal existence. 

Another important point to consider 
is this : Is man on probation in the im- 
mortal existence, after leaving the mor- 
tal existence ? He is not. Unless God has 
made it possible for man to sin beyond the 



206 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

grave. There is no Scripture to prove that 
man can sin in the immortal existence. 
Paul says that man was made subject to 
sin in this mortal existence while in the 
flesh where temptations generate from, and 
subject to sin, while clothed with this body- 
Revelation teaches man that God was too 
wise to make it possible for man to sin 
throughout eternity. Reason and revelation 
will justify the statement that probation 
for man ceases at the grave. 

There are other points to be considered, 
and in justice to man we will consider these 
points with an impartial view. Is man as 
an entity mortal or immortal ? According 
to Scripture, man is finite and mortal as an 
entity. This is in harmony with the law 
of God, that man is a dependent being, de- 
pending on a higher power for an existence, 
and cannot exist of himself. If man is im- 
mortal as an entity, makes himself exist- 
ing, and can exist without the support 
of God, and also making man equal with 
God, it makes man an independent being, 
and makes out Scripture a libel. 

Col. i. 17. ct And God is before all 
things, and by Him all things consist." 



Probation. 207 

This is proof that man is not immortal. 
For he does consist and live through God. 
Nowhere in Scripture is it stated that an- 
gels or mankind are immortal. On the 
contrary, it is a quality which is ascribed 
only to the divine nature, and not only is 
this true of the English word immortal, 
and its corresponding word incorruptible, 
but it is equally true of the original Greek 
terms which these translate. 

Immortal and immortality is eternal ex- 
istence, meaning God as an entity, who is 
eternal existence, and as Paul says, the 
only entity in the universe who hath im- 
mortality. Immortality is an element that 
cannot be inherited, one from another, for 
it is an element that never was generated 
in God. Neither can it be from God to 
man, for it never had a beginning. If 
generated, it must bylaw have a beginning. 
Hence, we learn that immortality is an ele- 
ment self -existing in itself, and independent 
of the creator of all things. And, as Paul 
says, all things consist by God, and de- 
pending on God for an existence. Kevela- 
tion is plain in regard to this matter, and 
reason admits the reasonableness of it, that 
man is a mortal entity. 



208 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

All that reason and revelation can make 
out of man, that he is mortal and finite in 
nature as an entity. m Mortal, because he is 
subject to death ; a human being, finite, 
bounded, limited, confined within bounds ; 
this is the nature of mortal man as an 
entity. On the other hand, immortal is 
unlimited, boundless, not subject to death, 
nor sin nor mercy. Hence, in this con- 
dition a man to be a probationer must by 
law be subject to sin, and as such, the 
principle of this law places man on trial 
or probation. And just as long as man is 
subject to sin, he is by law a probationer 
on probation. And in view of this, when 
man is released by law as a subject to sin, 
man then becomes free, and no longer 
bound as a probationer on probation. 

When will this cease as a law ; holding 
man within its limits ? Revelation speaks 
to man from the court of heaven, saying it 
ceases at the grave. There is no Scripture 
to prove that man is subject to sin, after 
passing into the immortal existence ; and 
no longer on probation, but subject to the 
laws of that immortal existence, reaping 
what man sowed while on probation in this 



Probation. 209 

mortal existence, according to the deeds 
done in the body, let it be good or bad. 

Question : Is there a limitation to the 
punishment due sin in the immortal exis- 
tence ? 

Answer : There is. Justice and equity 
from God demands it. Revelation teaches 
man that in the immortal existence he is 
not on probation, but redeemable, and will 
be redeemed, when justice is satisfied in 
harmony with the constitution of the prin- 
ciple incorporated into the new covenant. 
This world a world of probation, the next 
world a world of redemption. If this is 
not true, then the revelation of God in re- 
gard to the mission of Jesus Christ will be 
a failure. 

Question : If man is an immortal entity, 
is he sub j ect to sin ? 

Answer : Immortal and immortality is 
a quality of divine nature ; never dying, 
eternal existence, the entity of God, eter- 
nal without beginning or ending, the at- 
tribute of God. This divine attribute, im- 
mortal, eternal, does not exist in the entity 
of man, for man had a beginning as an en- 
tity. And in view of this, man is subject 



210 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

to sin and not immortal, only finite and 
mortal. 

Question : Would there be an existence 
if there was no God \ 

Answer : There can be no existence with- 
out God. Revelation teaches man that God 
is before all things, and by Him all things 
consist. In view of this fact, revelation 
proves that in that condition God was the 
only entity. Can there be an existence 
without an entity, a being, life ? Revela- 
tion, reason and Webster, in his diction- 
ary, says that it takes a life entity, a being, 
to make an eternity existence. Hence, in 
view of this, immortal and immortality is 
an attribute of divine nature — perfection, 
and impossible to be a subject to sin. This 
is positive proof that man is mortal, and on 
probation while in mortal existence. 

Question : How can man exist and never 
die in the immortal existence ? 

Answer : Revelation says that man lives, 
moves, and has a being in and through 
God. This applies to both worlds. From the 
conception of an entity it nurses from the 
breast of immortality to exist in the immor- 
tal existence, as well as in the mortal exist- 
ence. 



Probation. 211 

Question. If man dies unconverted, how 
will he be redeemed in the spirit world ? 

Answer. Through punishment ; man 
must reap what he sowed while in the flesh; 
man must bear his own burden in that 
world, and pay the last farthing, for 
through punishment man is purified, and 
in a condition to progress and be happy. 
Christ did not die as a substitute, to suf- 
fer for the sins of man. Christ died to re- 
deem the race from Adam's transgression, 
and the curse of the Jewish law. Nowhere 
in Scripture does it teach that man can be 
exempt from punishment due sin. Justice 
and equity demands that man must reap 
what he sowed as an element to purify 
the spirit of the man, the entity that lives 
in and through God. This punishment is 
limited, in harmony with the principle of 
the sacrifice that was made to redeem the 
race to God. If this punishment is eternal, 
then the sacrifice is of no use, and the at- 
tributes of God are without force and re- 
deeming power. 

Then in view of these facts before us, 
we are forced to a conclusion that man 
while in the flesh is on probation, and as 



212 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

soon as lie enters immortal existence, man 
is a subject to the benefit of the redemp- 
tion that Christ made for the race by the 
destruction of that spiritual death that 
Adam brought on an unborn innocent race 
of man. When Christ was on the cross he 
said to the world, "It is finished;" the uni- 
versal redemption for man is made to re- 
deem man from death, hell and the grave, 
and deal justice out to every man for his 
benefit in both worlds. If the story of the 
devil and eternal misery be true, then the 
devil, the being that God made, will con- 
quer, and with the boldness of a lion defy 
God Almighty to help himself. This devil 
can sway his scepter over God, and Igugh 
and say to God, What a mistake you made 
when you created me. Oh, ignorance of 
the nineteenth century, the mother of all 
misery, how much longer will man be 
rocked in this cradle of ignorance ? Arise 
from beneath the debris of darkness. Place 
God on the highest plane in the universe, 
and all of his creation must bow to him in 
submission. 



CHAPTER XI. 



THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 



IN the past and present age of the world 
this earth has been shrouded in dark- 
ness as to the true meaning of this ques- 
tion of the unpardonable sin. It has been 
a very popular doctrine with some of our 
leading religious institutions that man 
could grieve the Holy Spirit of God, and 
sin the day of grace away, and never be 
reconciled to God, which they term the un- 
pardonable sin. This doctrine that has 
been so popular in some religious institu- 
tions of our land, is the mother of ignor- 
ance, and will soon find its grave that 
knows no resurrection. The Scripture in 
one place speaks to man not to grieve the 
Holy Spirit. In another place it says, 
4 ' Unless^you hate your father and mother, 
and wife and children, ye cannot be my 
disciple.' 7 The two texts just mentioned 
do not mean as they read. We cannot ac- 
cept all Scripture as they read, but as they 



214 Dager^s Interpretation of the Bible. 

mean. There is no Scripture, when under- 
stood, that teaches that man can grieve 
the Holy Spirit of God; it is at war with 
the principle involved in all the attributes 
of God. God and his attributes are infi- 
nite and perfection. There is no law in 
this world to prove that man can grieve 
the Holy Spirit of God, or commit an un- 
pardonable sin. When God created man 
he created him a subject of love and mercy, 
never to cease. God was too wise and good 
when he made man to make it possible for 
a man to commit a sin unpardonable in na- 
ture, 

Matt. xii. 31: "Wherefore I say unto 
you, All manner of sin and blasphemy 
shall be forgiven unto men; but the blas- 
phemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be 
forgiven unto men." Verse 32: "And 
whosoever speaketh a word against the Son 
of man, it shall be forgiven him; but who- 
soever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it 
shall not be forgiven him, neither in this 
world neither in the world to come." 

What does Jesus mean when He says, 
"All manner of sin and blasphemy shall 
be forgiven unto men " ? This assertion 



The Unpardonable Sin. 215 

from Jesus is as broad as the universe in 
character; it says, ct all manner of sin. 77 
The provision made in this verse covers the 
entire ground; no chance for an argument. 
Every sin and blasphemy that man can 
commit in this mortal existence comes un- 
der this principle of ' 4 all manner of sin 
and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men. 77 
And the very next breath that Jesus takes, 
He says the blasphemy against the Holy 
Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. 
There is a collision in this text, in my 
opinion. Jesus Christ never uttered the 
whole text; He was too wise to make a 
blunder like this; it is like a large number 
of other texts in Scripture that have been 
tampered with in the revision to bring 
them into harmony with some religious 
dogma. Forgiveness, pardon, reconcilia- 
tion, mean one thing in the terms of Scrip- 
ture, as to the meaning of the words. God 
is always reconciled; man, to be reconciled 
to God, must be reconciled to the law. 
There are two ways laid out in Scripture 
for man to be reconciled to God. The law 
demands it in both cases. All responsible 
sin committed by man must be punished 



216 Dager^s Interpretation of the Bible. 

to satisfy the law, then man becomes re- 
conciled to God, being reconciled to the 
law through punishment for sin. When 
man becomes obedient to the law through 
conversion, he is reconciled to God for 
starting anew life; but sin committed be- 
fore man is converted must be punished to 
satisfy the justice of law, then the man be- 
comes reconciled to God through the justice 
of law; then the Scripture will be fulfilled 
where it says, without any provisor what- 
ever, that whatsoever a man soweth, that 
shall he also reap. 

Galatians vi. 7: ct Be not deceived; God 
is not mocked; for whatsoever a man sow- 
eth, that shall he also reap." Paul is plain, 
and talks to the point, that it is impossible 
to escape punishment from sin. Notice 
the emphasis that Paul gives, and says, 
4 'Be not deceived; God is not mocked.'* 
Do not think that Jesus Christ came into 
this world and shed his blood to exempt a 
sinner from punishment, and tear down 
that pure principle of justice and equity, 
and violate the immutable law of God. 
Verse 32: 4t And whosoever speaketh a 
word against the Son of man, it shall be 



The Unpardonable Sin. 217 

forgiven him; but whosoever speaketh 
against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be for- 
given him, neither in this world, neither 
in the world to come. 1 ' There is more har- 
mony in this text than the former one. 
Now, what is there of this ? Let us exam- 
ine Scripture, and see if we can get the 
proper interpretation and application. 
A. D. 31, Jesus was preaching his gospel 
in different places, and at the same time 
casting out devils and healing the sick. In 
this condition the Jewish Pharisees ac- 
cused Jesus of casting out devils by Beel- 
zebub. Then Jesus addresses them with 
the above text. He does not apply this 
text in regard to 'them for what they said, 
but he gave it to them as a prophecy to 
begin its fulfillment two years later, when 
he was to be delivered up to die, a. d. 33. 
When the time came for Jesus to be 
crucified, Pilate saw he could prevail 
nothing in quieting the Jews from taking 
the life of Jesus, Pilate then took water 
and washed his hands, saying, " I am in- 
nocent of the blood of this just person, see 
ye to it. 77 Matt, xxvii. 25. ,' 4 Then an- 
swered all the people 77 — that is, the Jews — 

14 



218 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

14 and said, His blood be on us and on our 
children." And it was, and is to-day as a 
punishment, as stated in the text, that it 
would not be forgiven in this world, neither 
in the world to come. 

This world and the world to come is not 
to be applied to the immortal existence, it 
belongs here on this earth. This prophecy 
was made in the Jewish world or age, as 
Scripture terms it. The next world spoken 
of in the text is this present Gentile world 
or age. This sin the Jews committed was 
blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, which 
was not to be forgiven in the Jewish world, 
neither in this Gentile age. 

When did the punishment begin, and 
when will it end for this unpardonable sin 
that the Jews committed as a nation ? It 
began A. D. 70, at the last destruction of 
Jerusalem, and will end in the beginning 
of the millennial, which will be the end of 
this present Gentile world. 

What is the nature of this punishment 
to the Jews as a nation, who said, c ' Let 
His blood be on us and our children " 2 

St. Luke xxi. 24. ct And they shall fall 
by the edge of the sword, and shall be led 



The Unpardonable Sin. 219 

away captive into all nations, and Jerusa- 
lem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, 
until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. " 

Was this blasphemy against the Holy 
Ghost by the Jews as a nation an unpar- 
donable sin ? It was, and cannot be par- 
doned until the prophecy is fulfilled, as 
stated in the text, which will take place at 
the end of this Gentile world. Then all 
Israel shall be saved, as stated in Romans 
Chap. xi. ik For this is my covenant unto 
them, when I shall take away their sins, 7 ' 
that is, when the Jews as a nation have 
paid their penalty for the blasphemy 
against the Holy Ghost, for saying c ' Let 
His blood be upon us and our children." 

The curse and punishment of that nation 
commenced A. D. 70, with the destruction 
of Jerusalem and the loss of their nation- 
ality, by being led captive among all na- 
tions until the fullness of the Gentiles come 
in, which will be at the end of this Gen- 
tile world. Then the unpardonable sin will 
come to an end. The prophecy spoken of 
in this text, from the eternal purpose 
of God, that the unpardonable sin of the 
Jews as a nation, could not be forgiven in 



220 Dager^s Interpretation of the Bible. 

this world ; neither in the world to come. 

Is this prophecy being fulfilled ? It is. 
For the past eighteen hundred years they 
have been scattered among the nations of 
the earth without a nationality, and to-day, 
in this age of the nineteenth century, the 
Jews as a nation, are still scattered among 
the nations of the earth without a national- 
ity, and will remain under the curse of this 
unpardonable sin until the last farthing is 
paid, which will be accomplished at the 
end of this Gentile world. Then they, as 
a nation, will be released from that sin, 
and will become a nationality. And as 
Paul says, as touching the election, l c They 
are beloved for the Father's sake." 

As far as personal sin is committed, God 
has not made it possible for man to commit 
a sin that cannot be pardoned and recon- 
ciled to God through punishment, la- 
mented in its character in the immortal ex- 
istence beyond the grave. 

If it be true, that man can commit a 
sin that cannot be pardoned and forgiven, 
which is reconciliation to God in the spirit 
world and the soul always to remain con- 
demned throughout all eternity, then it 



The Unpardonable Sin. 221 

will be impossible for Jesus Christ to fill 
His mission, and destroy the last enemy, 
which is spiritual death in the spirit world 
to come. This spiritual death is sin and 
its works on the souls of them that passed 
into the immortal existence, without being 
born again while in the flesh. 

1 Cor. xv. 26. 4t The last enemy that 
shall be destroyed is death." This is the 
death that Adam brought into the world, 
and the second Adam, which is Jesus 
Christ, must and will destroy this death 
from the souls of them that are injured by 
the sting. And now, unless Jesus Christ 
destroys this death and its effects upon the 
souls of men in the spirit world, and bring 
the race on a .plane of happiness, and in 
the original state of Adam before he fell, 
He will make a failure. And the blood of 
Christ and the new covenant will be of no 
force and power for the benefit of the race 
of man. 

There is not a Bible scholar of to-day, in 
the ministry or out of it, dare show his ig- 
norance to the advance thoughts and in- 
tellect of this age, and say to the world, 
that man can commit a sin that cannot be 



222 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

pardoned and reconciled to God in this 
mortal existence, or in the immortal exis- 
tence beyond the grave, according to the 
provision made in the law of the new 
covenant, sealed with the blood of Jesus 
Christ. 

In A. D. 33, when Jesus Christ, the 
special son of God, was nailed upon that 
cross and shed His blood, the sacrifice was 
made to redeem the lost race of Adam, 
and when Jesus gave up the ghost, the 
sun refused to shine, and the earth 
shrouded in darkness for three hours. The 
angelic spirits of the spirit world beheld 
the sight, and sang the beautiful song : 
1 ' Man is redeemed from Adam's transgres- 
sion, and death and hell swallowed up in 
victory. Oh, death, where is thy sting ? 
Oh, grave, where is thy victory. " 

Is it possible that in this age of civiliza- 
tion, that a large class of ministers have 
become hirelings, preaching wherever they 
can get the largest salary, and let the flock 
take care of themselves, advocating from 
their pulpits this damnable doctrine, so 
demoralizing in its character, and at the 
same time not believing one-half they 



The Unpardonable Sin. 223 

preach ? The very stones of the earth cry 
out, 4 4 Shame, shame, to the Christian 
institutions in this advanced age of ours. 
Sodom and G-omoro will rise up in judg- 
ment against us, for the backsliding and 
apostacy of the Christian church of to- 
day." If the unpardonable sin be true, 
and some of the unconverted be damned 
into eternal misery, what then will become 
of the hireling that preaches for the larg- 
est salary ? Then the hell that they advo- 
cate will be lined with souls of that char- 
acter. 

But thanks be to a loving God that has 
made provision in the constitution of the 
new covenant for the salvation of every 
son and daughter of Adam's race; if not re- 
stored to happiness in this mortal exist- 
ence, it must be in the immortal existence, 
for the force and powder of that blood runs 
into the immortal existence, and will oper- 
ate on the souls of men until all are pun- 
ished for sin, and justice satisfied, and the 
race restored in a state of happiness and 
progression in the original state of Adam 
before he fell. If this be not true, then 
the blood of Jesus Christ and the new cov- 



224 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

enant is a blank, and dead to the race of 
man. Christ tasted death for every man; 
Christ died for our sins, not as a substi- 
tute, but to save us from that spiritual 
death that Adam brought on the race, the 
last enemy; then God will gather together 
one and all that is in heaven and that is in 
earth, even with him, that he will be all 
and in all. In conclusion of this chapter, I 
will present the following Scripture, which 
I trust will satisfy any reasonable mind 
that the unpardonable sin is not true, as 
advocated by some of our Christian insti- 
tutions. 

Matt, xviii. 11: "For the Son of man is 
come to save that which was lost. 77 This 
Scripture is positive in its character. Will 
he do it % God declares in his word that 
he will do it. Who are the lost ? The 
race of man. How came it lost ? By the 
fall of Adam. 

1 Cor. xv. 22: "For in Adam all die, 77 
that is, the entire race, ' L even so in Christ 
shall all be made alive; 77 that is, brought 
out of this death and made happy through 
the death of Jesus Christ. Heb. ii. 9: 
4 c That Christ should taste death for every 
man; 77 that is, every human being. 



The Unpardonable Sin. 225 

Romans v. 12: tl Wherefore as by one 
man sin entered into the world, and death 
Iby sin, and so death passed upon all men, 
for that all have sinned. ?? Death is the 
result of sin; that is the reaping of what 
has been sowed. Punishment and misery 
for man is this death, as stated above. Will 
it be destroyed from the soul of man, and 
he become happy ? It will ; for Jesus 
tasted death for the race, and will destroy 
this death, the effects of sin upon the 
soul. 

1 Cor. xv. 26: ct The last enemy that 
shall be destroyed is death. " Verse 28: 
When this is done, Jesus ' c will deliver up 
the kingdom to God, 77 and become subject 
to God, that God may be all in all. This 
death that Jesus will destroy is the effect 
of sin upon the soul. Where will this take 
place ? It will take place in the immortal 
existence for the unconverted that pass into 
spirit life not reconciled to God. ' ' The 
last enemy that shall be destroyed is death, " 
the misery and punishment that sin gen- 
erated; this has to be accomplished in the 
spirit world with the unconverted that die 
in sin. If not accomplished there, it never 



226 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

will be, and Christ will fail in destroying* 
death, and a large portion of the race will 
suffer eternal misery, the unpardonable sin, 
through the fall of Adam; then God is re- 
sponsible for this, for he put Adam there, 
and it was the eternal purpose that Adam 
should fall, so as to carry out the purpose 
of God, that the earth might be peopled, 
and man put in a condition to know good 
from evil. If this had not been done, the 
earth would have been a barren wilderness, 
and no man to till the ground. In this wise 
purpose of God that Adam should fall, 
God prepared a remedy from the Seed of 
the woman, that when all the purposes of 
God were carried out in both worlds, the 
race should be redeemed from the curse of 
this fall, and placed in the original state 
of Adam, through the blood of Jesim 
Christ. 



CHAPTER XII. 



SERPENT, DRAGON, SATAN, DEVIL. 



THESE four names spoken of here, when 
traced back into history, we find have 
their origin from heathen doctrine, by com- 
pounding the different words into one word 
of our language. This is the way that 
these four names became prominent in our 
Bible. Borrowed from the heathen in back 
ages by taking the names of their gods of 
•the lower world and compounding them to- 
gether in these names — Serpent, Dragon, 
Satan, Devil — and for ages past some of 
our Christian denominations of the world 
have been taking the advantage of these 
names, and have not given a correct inter- 
pretation and application, but have hurled 
from their pulpits that these names meant 
the devil, a spiritual conscious entity, 
working in opposition to God, with a de- 
termination to min man and drag him af- 
ter death into an endless located hell to be 
a bosom companion to devils throughout 



228 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

all eternity. Why ? Because lie was not 
converted to the doctrine they advocated 
from their pulpits. 

Through the spasmodic revivals of 
some churches there have been a great 
many weak-minded persons made mad and 
insane through the fright that shocked 
their being, coming from the mouth of a 
Christian minister the apostate doctrine 
which has caused many a person to die in 
a lunatic asylum. Who will be responsible 
to God for advocating a doctrine that is 
not true? The hireling, the apostate, 
whose garments will be stained with the 
blood of those that have been deceived. 
They will stand before God in the spirit 
world as witnesses against them that de- 
ceived them with a false doctrine. 

We will now investigate this question 
through common sense and reason. The 
principle of truth contained in Scripture 
is of such a nature that it will adjust 
itself* to our reason, that we may be 
able to give a correct interpretation to this 
question at issue. In case one has been de- 
veloped on a plane of thought which will 
make him a fit subject for the emergency, 



Serpent, Dragon, Satan, Devil. 229 

the religion of the new covenant and the 
truth of Scripture is of such a nature that 
makes it applicable to the reason of man, 
that he may understand the truth of wrong 
from right. 

The Hindoo theology teaches that there 
are three gods, Brahma, Vishnu and Seva, 
the creator, the preserver and the destroyer. 
According to the Hindoo system, Seva pre- 
sides over birth, marriage and death. He 
is the lord of all germination and decay, 
birth and death of all vegetable and animal 
organisms; he is the lord of all destructive 
agencies, such as war, famines, plagues, 
earthquakes, storms, cyclones, hail, thun- 
derbolts; he sends insects, vermin, blast- 
ing or blight, and the various diseases of 
the body; he loves to see men miserable; it 
affords him great pleasure to have his crea- 
tures deny themselves every gratification; 
his followers represent him as an ascetic, 
a doleful, forlorn-looking wretch, with 
long matted hair and hollow cheeks, cov- 
ered with ashes and filth, which was their 
highest type of piety. He is the god of 
evil in nature and in civil government— 
the god of all despotisms and oppressions. 



230 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

These various characters of his are repre- 
sented by the bull, an infant, a skull and 
a serpent. The serpent represents his 
working through the natural human mind, 
inspiring it with ambition, love of rule, 
envy, guile, diplomatic artifices, subtleties 
and juggleries of methods to acquire as- 
cendency over the minds of others, and gain 
dominion in the world, and rob the race of 
its blessings. It is in this sense that it is 
particularly employed as a symbol in the 
book of Revelation, Chap. xii. 

This spirit is represented in all the ori- 
ental religions by the dragon, the anaconda 
and the cobra de capello. There does not 
appear to be any particular species of ser- 
pent alluded to in the garden of Eden, but 
the two great systems of religion, the one 
emanating from the serpent, and the other 
from Jehovah, are here brought to view in 
the very outset. In Egypt, the basilisk, 
which is a species of serpent, is found en- 
twined about the bonnets and head dresses 
of the kings and gods as emblematical of 
dominion and power, from which has evi- 
dently been derived the Greek word basil- 
eus, a king. It also represents the su- 



Serpent, Dragon, Satan, Devil. 231 

premacy of mind over matter, or in other 
"words, superior knowledge or wisdom. 

The Hindoos called their Gods Devas, 
and Seva was called Maha-deva, the great 
strong God. And the Iranian branch of 
the Aryan race, that is, the Persians and 
Hebrews, added the suffix ill or il to this 
title, and so we have our word devil 
(deva-il,) that is, the evil God. In Seva 
we discern the germs of our word evil. 
The word satan has evidently been derived 
from Chaldea, the old city of Ur, where 
Abraham was born, has at last been dis- 
covered, and there have been dug up from 
its sands, where they have been entombed 
for thousands of years, stone tablets, upon 
which is inscribed the word tc ana,' 7 as the 
God of the lower world. Our word satan 
is evidently compounded of this word ana 
and sat, meaning the strong ana or the 
mighty God of the lower world. 

I hope the reader, by careful study, will 
understand the meaning of the above, as to 
where the words evil, devil, satan and ser- 
pent had their origin from. 

What is evil ? According to Webster, 
wickedness through disobedience to the 



232 Dager^s Interpretation of the Bible. 

law. This is final. Now according to this, 
if there is no human being on earth that is 
disobedient to the law, then there is no 
evil in this world. It is not debatable. No 
chance for an argument. 

We have already shown that origin of 
the world evil. We will now show the 
origin of that element, the principle con- 
tained in the word according to Scripture. 
The words evil and devil mean one thing, 
and originated from Seva, the Hindoo's 
strong Grod. This does away with the 
orthodox devil, who claims to be a conscious 
spirit entity ; a fallen angel, that is in op- 
position to Grod. 

What a farce ! This is too thin to believe 
for the intelligence and culture of man in 
the nineteenth century. There is not a 
clergy in this land of ours, who is honest 
and on a high plane of thought and cul- 
ture, that will advocate this doctrine from 
any of the the pulpits, except the hireling, 
the apostate, the hypocrite that wants to 
keep the people ignorant and rob them of 
their money. 

The origin of evil in the beginning of the 
race, according to Scripture, originated 



The Unpardonable Sin. 233 

from Eve, the mother of the race. What pro- 
cess did Eve pass tlirouglit to generate evil 
and the devil in her being ? It was the de- 
ception of her own being, and at the same 
time ignorant of her condition. It was sim- 
ply nursing impure thoughts and putting 
them into execution, which was the 
cause of generating the tempter, which 
means, in a spiritual sense, devil. Tempter, 
evil and devil means one thing in this case 
when brought into execution, and is spir- 
itual death. 

This allegory in Scripture, in regard to 
Eve being deceived by a serpent, is not lit- 
eral in its nature. It was a figure to illus- 
trate the tempter, evil and devil, that Eve 
generated in herself as stated above. There 
was no conscious entities in the words 
tempter, evil and devil. These words were 
to give expression to the principle involved 
in this case. Nowhere from Genesis to 
Revelation does the Scripture justify the 
reality of that serpent in the allegory. It 
was a type of a serpent in a figure that Eve 
generated in herself. 

What is the law in Scripture in regard 
to the new covenant ? 

15 



234 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

James i. 14, 15. "But every man is 
tempted when lie is drawn away of liis own 
lust and enticed, then when lust hath con- 
ceived it bringeth forth sin ; and sin when 
it is finished, bringeth forth death. ,? 

Death here means misery, unhappiness 
into the soul of the sinner. " 

The Apostle James is very plain in his 
statement in regard to this question, and 
gives a plain view as to evil. He says when 
a man is drawn away of his own lust he is 
tempted. This proves that when a man 
lusts after evil, it generates the tempter 
within him. This is what is meant in the 
allegory — serpent, satan, dragon, devil. It 
also applies to individuals and nations, and 
whenever these names come in question, 
in Scripture, it never means to be under- 
stood that it is a living conscious entity, a 
spirit devil; it is a borrowed name from 
heathens, and used in the Bible as figures 
to illustrate a spiritual truth which occurs 
in man. 

Matt. iv. " ' In this chapter we find the 
history of the temptation of Jesus Christ by 
the devil into the wilderness. The words 



The Unpardonable Sin. 235 

composed in this story will not justify it as 
literal in the nature of this question. St. 
Matthew understood the nature of this 
temptation, and the surroundings of the 
condition of Christ at that time, as he 
was a daily companion of Christ. If this 
Scripture is reliable and given to the world 
as it came from the mouth of Mathew. 
Then there is but one conclusion as to its 
true interpretation, that is, it is an alle- 
gory. And through this allegory the dif- 
ferent religious institutions of the past and 
present ages have speculated and taken ad- 
vantage of this question in regard to the 
Interpretation and application. If this 
Scripture is literal in its meaning, then 
Jesus was led up of the spirit into the wil- 
derness, a forest, a tract of land covered 
with trees, to be tempted of the devil. If 
this be true, then the devil must have been 
waiting among the trees of this forest, ex- 
pecting that Jesus would soon come, so as 
to tantalize Him through the consent of 
God. What a farce ! What a humbug for 
the people to believe in this advan cedage 
of the nineteenth century. It reads, ' L He 
was led up of the spirit;" it does not say 



236 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

what spirit or whose spirit led Him up. I 
presume the writer intended to leave this 
silent in all ages to come, so the people 
could guess and have evening quarrels in 
regard to its true meaning. 

If it is an allegory, what is the true in- 
terpretation of this question % I will give 
it as I understand it, but not as final. The 
connections in this story are not reliable. 
It reads, He was taken into the wilderness 
to be tempted of the devil, and while fast- 
ing there for forty days and nights, Jesus 
became hungry, and when the tempter 
came again, he said, c 4 If Thou be the son 
of God, command that these stones be made 
bread." The devil must have gone away, 
for it reads, he came again to tantalize 
Jesus to turn the stones into bread. Then 
when the devil got through tantalizing 
and abusing Jesus Christ, through the con- 
sent of God, for God had to consent to let 
the devil do this, or he could not, as God 
controls all things. If this be true, it then 
makes God a party to the act, and also ac- 
cessory with the devil in the accomplish- 
ment of the act, which, according to the 
law^ of God, it would condemn God and the 



The Unpardonable Sin. 237 

devil as criminals, and worthy to be pun- 
ished to satisfy justice and equity. 

The next thing that the devil did to 
Jesus was to take Him out of the wilder- 
ness and take' Him up into the Holy City 
and set Him on a pinnacle of the tem- 
ple. How Jesus got down from the pinnacle 
safe to the ground is a mystery ; as the 
writer is silent in regard to it. Then after 
the devil got through tantalizing Jesus he 
took Him up into an exceeding high moun- 
tain, and showeth Him all the kingdoms of 
the world, and the glory of them. 

This will do for a fish-story, but too 
shaky for the present age. I presume the 
people of that age thought the earth to be 
flat, to make it consistent for the devil to 
show Jesus all the kingdoms of the earth 
from that mountain. 

I do not question but what the people in 
that age thought so, and up to three centur- 
ies ago, when Galileo announced to the 
world that the earth was round and not flat, 
and revolved once in twenty -four hours. 
What did the Christian churches do with 
Galileo because he told the truth? Why, the 
Christians who claim to be the salt of the 



238 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

earth, and their dogma final, took Galileo 
and murdered him in cold blood. That 
was the kind of religion that the people be- 
lieved in through a wrong interpretation 
of Scripture. And the same element exists 
in the present age among some of our lead- 
ing popular religious institutions of this 
land of ours. Let a man to-day advance a 
truth that is new to the world, how quick 
some of these religious institutions will 
close their mouths in regard to it, for fear 
their dogma may be injured and loose its 
power among the people. Then when the 
devil got through with Jesus he left Him, 
and angels came and ministered unto Him. 

We will interpret this allegory according 
to Scripture, in regard to the temptation 
of Jesus Christ by the devil. 

Romans viii. 20. ' 4 For the creature that 
is man, was made subject to vanity, that is 
sin, not willingly, but by reason of Him, 
that is Grod, who hath subjected the same, 
in hope." 

This is proof that man is made subject to 
sin, and his nature susceptible to admit 
thoughts and nurse them, and be drawn 
away of his own lust. 



The Unpardonable Sin. 239 

James i. 13, 14. 4 ' Let no man say when 
he is tempted, I am tempted of God ; for 
God cannot be tempted with evil, neither 
tempteth He any man." 

If there is a conscious spirit entity called 
the devil, that tempted Jesus Christ, then 
it was God that tempted Jesus indirectly 
through the devil, for Scripture teaches 
that God created all things in the uni- 
verse, and controls all things. Is the devil 
in this or out of it ? Scripture and science 
says that the devil is in it and a part 
of it. If so, then God tempted Jesus Christ 
Himself, through this medium called the 
devil. And now, the religious institutions 
of our land are trying hard to saddle the 
whole of this on this poor devil, that was 
helpless and could not exist without the 
will of God. A very thin doctrine, Rather 
hard for man to swallow in this age of the 
nineteenth century. Is it a wonder that 
the nations of the earth are in the gutter 
of ignorance, and still right in the light of 
this truth. Some of our churches are try- 
ing to move heaven and earth to hold the 
power over man, and feed him with this 
inconsistent doctrine, so damnable in its 



240 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

character, with the audacity of a thief, 
who is ready to enter your house and steal 
your goods. 

Verse 14: lt But every man is tempted 
when he is drawn away of his own lust and 
enticed." This should satisfy every rea- 
sonable mind what the tempter and devil 
is. It is one element in the nature of man, 
generated when drawn of his own lust. 
Is man tempted when he is not drawn away 
of his own lust ? — is there a literal devil in 
this? No; this is positive proof that the 
tempter called the devil is a generated el- 
ement in man when he is drawn away of 
his own lust and enticed. As man is made 
subject to sin, he becomes his own devil, 
through the cultivation of his own nature, 
by being drawn away of his own lust ; ' 'and 
when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth 
sin; and sin when it is finished, bringeth 
forth death." This is the death that Adam 
brought on an innocent race, and this death 
Jesus Christ, through his sacrifice, will de- 
stroy in both worlds, or his mission will 
be a failure. 

Heb. ii. 14, 16, 17, 18: " Forasmuch then 
as the children are partakers of flesh and 



The Unpardonable Sin. 241 

Wood, He also himself likewise took part 
of the same." Verse 16: "For verily He 
look not on Him the nature of angels; but 
He took on Him the seed of Abraham." 
Verse 17: tc Wherefore in all things it be- 
hooved Him to be made like unto His 
brethren." Verse 18: tc For in that He 
himself hath suffered, being tempted, He 
is able to succor them that are tempted." 

Heb. iv. 15: iC But was in all points 
tempted like as we are, yet without sin." 
This Scripture is positive proof that Jesus 
had the same nature as man to-day. The 
only difference between the nature of Je- 
sus and man was, He was made without 
sin, but was made subject to sin as other 
men, and had the same ordeal to pass 
through as man in all ages of the world. 

We have now got where we can interpret 
this allegory. Jesus came on this earth on 
a mission, and in filling this mission it was 
the purpose of God to thoroughly try his 
Son Jesus Christ as other men are. No 
man in the history of the world, born from 
a woman, that had the power invested in 
Him as Jesus had, which made His tempta- 
tions and sufferings greater than other 



242 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

men through the condition that Jesus oc- 
cupied. Is it a wonder that he sweat 
blood under the ordeal of his trials ? 
There were two great objects to decide 
upon, and in view of this, he must make a 
choice. One object was to fulfill his 
mission, or let it go by default, and be- 
come the temporal king of the Jews, and 
also of the whole world. Upon this is 
wrapped up the true meaning of this alle- 
gory. On this occasion of his life was the 
greatest event that Jesus passed through. 
It was a choice of life or death. Upon this 
rested the destiny of the race. The ex- 
ceedingly high mountain that Jesus expe- 
rienced, with all the kingdoms of the world 
before him, was the greatness and the dig- 
nity that would crown liis head as king of 
this world if he would yield and worship 
the lower elements of his nature, and be 
drawn away of his own lust, the generated 
tempter called the devil within the man 
Jesus. But Jesus under this ordeal did 
not yield, and overcome the lower elements 
of His nature, the tempter within, and an- 
nihilated it through the decision that Jesus 
made. The die was then cast, the hope of 



The Unpardonable Sin. 243 

the race secured; then angels came and 
ministered unto him. 

We read in this allegory that the devil 
taketh Jesus up into the city and setteth 
Him on a pinnacle of the temple, and saith 
unto Him, L ' If Thou be the Son of God, 
cast thyself down." The condition drawn 
from this figure places Jesus in a dangerous 
position. How is He going to get down 
if Jesus will worship the lower elements of 
His nature, and become the king of the 
Jews and the world ? Then He can get 
down safe. If Jesus will not worship the 
earth, and will fill his mission on earth and 
establish the church as Grod commanded 
Him to do, then He must lose His life on 
the pinnacle of the temple. The pinnacle 
represented the church, and in the estab- 
lishment of this church Jesus lost His life. 
The forty days and nights that Jesus fasted 
in the wilderness was a figure belonging 
in this allegory, illustrating the suffering 
— the persecution, the starvation — that 
Jesus was to pass through while es- 
tablishing the church of God. For the 
sake of an argument, and to see what there 
is of it, we will admit that the devil is a 



244 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

conscious, intelligent spirit entity, and 
once a lioly angel, and fell from that pure 
state through disobedience to God. If it 
be true, as some of our clergy say it is, 
that the devil was once a holy angel, then 
it is positive evidence that there is no 
truth in this story. From the nature of 
this question it is impossible for a holy an- 
gel to commit a sin through disobedience. 
Holy is an attribute of God, pure and per- 
fect. A holy angel could not sin any 
more than God could. If there is a holy 
angel, God must have created him; if so, 
then God in creating this holy angel made 
him pure, with pure elements that could 
not rebel in any condition, for he was not 
made subject to sin, and imperfect as man 
was. And on the other hand, if true, if 
this angel did fall, then it must follow, ac- 
cording to the nature of law, that God 
must have generated an impure element in 
the being of this angel, only to rebel in 
process of time, and fall and become a 
devil. If this be true, then he was made 
a devil when created, and God responsible 
for the act, and also responsible for all the 
misery that the race has suffered from the 
beginning of the world. 



CHAPTER XIII. 



THE RESURRECTION. 



THE question of resurrection, as we 
find it in Scripture is so very compli- 
cated in its nature, in its different inter- 
pretations and applications, that it has 
been passed upon by the different relig- 
ious creeds upon this earth, and has become 
very speculative in its character. But in 
view of all the different opinions in the 
present and past ages, there is but one 
truth that can be brought to the surface 
through the interpretation of the different 
resurrections spoken of in Scripture. For 
a long period in the past, and also in the 
present age, we have a large proportion of 
the race who believe in the resurrection of 
our physical bodies at the end of time, 
when man will cease to be born, and time 
will come to an end. Is there any Scrip- 
ture to be found in the Bible to justify 
any one to believe in the resurrection of 
the body, to be united with the spirit gone 



246 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

in advance into the spirit world ? There 
is none. 

The first resurrection for our considera- 
tion can be found in Ezekiel xxxvii. 11: 
c ' Then he said unto me, Son of man, these 
bones are the whole house of Israel; be- 
hold, they say, Our bones are dried, and 
our hope is lost; we are cut off for our 
parts. 77 Verse 12: t4 Therefore prophesy 
and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord 
God, Behold, Oh my people, I will open 
your graves and cause you to come up out 
of your graves, and bring you into the land 
of Israel. Verse 13: Li And ye shall know 
that I am the Lord, when I have opened 
your graves, Oh my people, and brought 
you up out of your graves. Verse 14: 
t4 And shall put my spirit in you, and ye 
shall live, and I shall place you in your 
own land; then shall ye know that I the 
Lord have spoken it, and performed it, 
saith the Lord. 77 

This vision that Ezekiel had while in the 
seventy years captivity in Babylon, in re- 
gard to this question, is a strong figure to 
illustrate the condition of Israel as a na- 
tion at that time and the condition they 



The Resurrection. 247 

have been in ever since, and will be 
down to the end of the Gentile world, 
when the fullness of the Gentiles is ac- 
complished ; then all Israel will be saved, 
as Paul says. Then the prophecy of Eze- 
kiel will be fulfilled, when the whole house 
of Israel, that is, the twelve tribes as a na- 
tion, will be brought up out of their graves 
as a condition, and not a location, where 
the dead lay in their graves, to turn to dust 
from whence they came, never to be united 
again with spirit entity that has layed it 
off as a garment forever. By the uniting 
of two sticks in this vision, is shown the 
incorporation of the twelve tribes of Israel 
into one nation. This nation was in their 
graves when this prophecy was made by 
Ezekiel. Graves spoken of here means the 
condition they were in at that time, under- 
going the seventy years captivity as slaves 
in bondage, not free to act as they did when 
they enjoyed the freedom and blessings 
of their own land ; and for the past eight- 
een hundred years they have been in their 
graves as a condition, by the loss of their 
nationality and the curse of a broken law, 
who said, ' ' Let His blood be upon us and 



248 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

upon our children." Blindness in part 
hath happened to Israel until the end of 
this Gentile age or world, then all Israel 
will be brought up out of their graves as a 
condition, by accepting the gospel of Jesus 
Christ and forsaking their old covenant, 
which is, in a figure, the grave that Ezekiel 
prophesied of, while in captivity in Baby- 
lon. 

St. John v. 28, 29. 4t Marvel not at this, 
for the hour is coming in the which all 
that are in the graves shall hear his voice, 
and shall come forth ; they that have done 
good unto the resurrection of life, and they 
that have done evil unto the resurrection 
of damnation. " 

This Scripture is a parable spoken by 
Jesus Christ, A. D. 31, while in Jerusalem, 
as a prophecy, and to reprove and open the 
eyes of the Jews from their low condition. 
And a certain man was there, which had 
an infirmity thirty-eight years. Jesus saw 
him lie, and with that pure love of our 
Elder Brother, Jesus said, ct Wilt thou be 
made whole ? ' The man answered and 
said, " I have no man to help me." Jesus 
said unto him, ' 4 Bise, take up thy bed and 



The Resurrection. 249 

walk. " And the man was made whole and 
did walk. And it was the Sabbath day; 
and when the Jews saw the man was healed 
through the word of Jesus Christ on the 
Sabbath day, they sought to kill him, be- 
cause he did this on the Sabbath day, and 
called God His father. The Jews marvelled 
at the mighty works of Jesus Christ. Then 
Jesus ■ spoke this prophecy to them and 
said, ''The hour is coming and now is, 
when the dead shall hear the voice of the 
son of God, and they that hear shall live." 
The interpretation of this is, the man that 
is dead to God in a spiritual sense and alive 
to sin, shall hear the gospel preached, and 
they that hear and are born of the spirit 
shall live, by passing from spiritual death 
to spiritual life." 

Then Jesus said : 44 Marvel not at this, 
for the hour is coming in the which all 
that are in the graves shall hear His voice, 
and shall come come forth ; they that have 
done good unto the resurrection of life, and 
they that have done evil unto the resur- 
rection of damnation 7 ' or condemnation. 

This resurrection, by the terms of Scrip- 
ture, cannot be applied to the physical 



250 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

body of man that goes into the earth as a 
grave; it is a parable, and must be consid- 
ered as such. The grave spoken of here is 
the Jewish world. The Jews and Gentiles 
are in this grave, meaning their condition 
as to both nations. The hour was soon to 
come, when the nations of this earth, both 
good and bad, were to be resurrected from 
this dark Jewish age or world, into the 
present Gentile world, a world on a higher 
plane of thought and spiritual life. They 
came forth from their dark graves, the 
Jewish world, where death, hell and the 
grave did exist in a figure. 

In A. D. 70, the fulfillment of this pro- 
phecy came to pass ; the last destruction of 
Jerusalem, and great was the fall. This 
was the greatest resurrection that ever took 
place on this earth, or ever will. The Gen- 
tiles were resurrected unto life, because 
they accepted the kingdom of heaven 
through Jesus Christ, while the Jews were 
resurrected unto damnation, because they 
rejected Jesus Christ, and said, tl Let His 
blood be upon us and upon our children." 
This damnation will rest upon the Jews as 
a nation until the restitution of them at the 



The Resurrection. 251 

end of this Gentile world, when all Israel 
will be saved by forsaking their old cove- 
nant and accepting the new covenant of 
Jesus Christ. 

According to the terms of Scripture, 
resurrection is in its nature an elevation, 
by being raised and exalted from one con- 
tion or plane to another. All resurrections 
spoken of in the Scripture are of the same 
nature. 

Gen. iii. 19. tc In the sweat of thy face 
shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto 
the ground ; for out of it wast thou taken; 
for dust thou art and unto dust shall thou 
return." 

The word of God in this Scripture is de- 
cisive and final, that the body must return 
to dust and remain as such. 

Ecclesiastes xii. 7. 4t Then shall the 
dust return to the earth as it was, and the 
spirit shall return unto God who gave it, 
this is final. 77 When the spirit in man is 
resurrected from this mortal existence to an 
immortal existence, he gives it up to mother 
earth, where it belongs ; never in this or 
any other world to be robed with it again. 
For the body is of the earth, earthy ; but 



252 Dager^s Interpretation of the Bible. 

the spirit of the heaven, heavenly. The 
spirit is the entity of man, and not the 
body. The spirit will continue on to live, 
while the body will forever remain dust. 

1 Cor. xv. 35. tl But some man will say 
how are the dead raised up, and with what 
body do they come." 

Verse 36. 4 c Thou fool ; that which thou 
soweth is not quickened, except it die," 

St. John xii. 24. tc Except a corn of 
wheat fall into the ground and die it 
abideth alone, but if it die it bringeth 
forth much fruit." 

John and Paul in this Scripture are com- 
paring two events. He likens the change 
of the body of man from natural to spirit-, 
ual, to the process which goes on in the 
growth of grain from the seed. The seed 
sown dies and from it evolves the new 
grain, and the process is so exact that the 
new grain has a body of its own, and yet 
bears a resemblance of the seed that gene- 
rated it. We then learn from this figure 
that the corn of wheat must be sown and 
die, then from it evolves the new seed 
wheat. Not something else, but like the 
seed that produced it ; so is the resurrection 



The Resurrection . 253 

of the dead. The natural body is sown in 
corruption, that is, it comes from the womb 
imperfect, subject to decay and die. From 
it evolves the spiritual body. The spiritual 
coming out of the natural ; as the grain 
comes out of the seed. The first is natural, 
the second is spiritual ; the natural is tem- 
porary, the spiritual is eternal ; the natural 
shall perish and return to dust, from 
whence it came ; the spiritual is eternal; 
the one shall perish, the other shall live 
through and in God, the immortality of the 
universe. 

When does this change take place, at the 
death of the body or at the end of time, 
when man ceases to exist as a mortal man 
and the spiritual then be resurrected from 
the grave of the natural body, now in 
dust ? 

The latter is inconsistent and not in 
harmony with the principle that evolves 
from the spiritual body, the entity of man. 
Paul says there is a natural body, and there 
is a spiritual bod.y. The spiritual body is 
the entity of man living in the natural 
body, while in mortal existence. Then 
when the natural body dies, the spiritual 



254 Dagers Interpretatio?i of the Bible. 

body is resurrected from the natural and 
mortal existence into the immortal exis- 
tence. 

Why is this existence immortal to this 
spiritual entity, the man ? Because God 
proposed before He made man, that this 
would be His last resurrection from one 
existence to another. The last existence im- 
mortal in character, because it is eternal. 
This does not follow that the entity of man 
is immortal. If so, it would destroy the 
principle that govern Scripture. It would 
make man as an entity self-existing, and 
could exist without God, when Paul 
says, that man moves, lives and has his 
being in God, the only entity in the uni- 
verse that is self-existing, which is immor- 
tal. 

1 Cor. xv. Verses 45 and 46 are allegor- 
ical in character. The first man, Adam, 
was made a living soul. This in the alle- 
gory means the natural man. The last 
Adam, that is Jesus Christ, was made a 
quickening spirit. The first was natural, 
the second was spiritual ; the natural is 
corruption, the spiritual is incorruption. 
The corruption cannot inherit incorruption. 



The Resurrection. 255 

Then how does this mortal put on immor- 
tality i Through this change as Paul 
says, when the natural body dies it then 
forces the resurrection of the spiritual body 
from the natural. What then ? It changes 
existence from the mortal existence to the 
immortal existence. Then is brought about 
the saying : mortal has put on immortality; 
corruption has put on incorruption. Death 
then is swallowed up in victory. The 
spirit entity has bid adieu to the earth and 
the earthy, and impossible to ever be a sub- 
ject to death again. It is now in the last 
existence, the immortal ; it is now free from 
death, pain and sin ; it has given up the 
natural body, which is of the earth, earthy. 
The bodily likeness between the two, the 
natural and spiritual, shall be as close in 
resemblance as the wheat that came from 
the wheat sown. The process of death 
eliminates the refined out of the gross, and 
we bear away the one and leave the other. 
That is, the spiritual body will be set at 
liberty and get rid of the natural body ; 
which is of the earth earthy, This proves 
that the resurrection takes place at the 
death of the body of man. 



CHAPTER XIV. 



MAN PROPOSES, BUT GOD DISPOSES. 



THE Bible informs man that God is the 
creator and preserver and controller 
of all things in this universe, which gives 
the world a guarantee that the elements 
evolving from this principle is evidence of 
itself, and positive proof that God is the 
disposer of all things. Man puts the seed 
into the ground as he proposes, but God, 
the disposer, causes the growth thereof un- 
der the disposition of his own law; and as 
the nature of the seed is, so in like manner 
will the production of its offspring be the 
same in nature. If the seed is wheat, and 
in good ground, it will produce wheat in 
like manner; and the diversities of all 
seeds sown will take their likeness through 
an immutable law of the disposer of all 
things. Man is a benefactor, and as a rule 
of law, the .human seed, the animal seed, 
and the different seeds that grow from the 
earth, are in the disposition of the law of 



Man Proposes, But God Disposes. 257 

cause and effect the same in its nature in 
bringing forth the same from the seed 
sown, and in consideration of all of these 
cases, if the seed be healthy and in good 
ground, and properly cultivated, will pro- 
duce healthy offspring, let it be what 
it may. 

Question. Are there any accidents upon 
this earth ? If so, what are they ? 

Answer. There are; the principle of an 
accident is an event proceeding from an 
unforeseen cause unknown to man. 

Question. Is there anything that may 
happen as an accident to man, that may be 
an accident to God ? 

Answer. There is nothing that happens 
in this world that is called an accident to 
man that is an accident to God. There is 
nothing that takes place in this universe 
that is unforeseen by God. If there was, 
he would not be a God of infinite wisdom 
and knowledge. Accidents belong to the 
finite man, w^lio cannot know or see one 
moment in advance. He is only a pro- 
poser, working in the darkness of the fu- 
ture, while God is the disposer, the light 
of the world. 



258 Dager^s Interpretation of the Bible. 

Question. If two trains of cars upon a 
railroad should have a collision, and a 
score of people lose their lives in this col- 
lision, unforeseen to man, the proposer of 
the moving of these trains to their respect- 
ive places, would God in this case be the 
disposer ? 

Answer. He would, from the fact that 
God foresaw this collision, and knew that 
it would occur at that time through the 
carelessness of the help of the road and 
train. 

Question. Could God have stopped this 
collision if he saw fit to do so ? 

Answer. He could, by the operation of 
his spirit upon the minds of the help to 
enable them to have foreseen the difficulty 
in time to stop this collision. 

Question. Then why did he not do it ? 
Man, a human fiend, would have stopped 
it if he had foreseen the difficulty in 
time. 

Answer. Remember that God is the dis- 
poser, whose ways are past finding out, 
whose thoughts are infinite, while man is 
finite. We cannot tell why God did not 
stop this collision; he suffered it to be so 



Man Projyoses, But God Disj?oses. 259 

through the disposition of his infinite law. 

Question. Does God dispose the pro- 
posals that man makes within himself in 
his closet how to wrong his fellow man ? 

Answer. God disposes of all that man 
proposes to do. God does not take away 
the free will power of man to dispose of 
what man proposes to do. This is done in 
in harmony in his purpose through the 
law of justice and equity. If man pro- 
poses to wrong his fellow man, God then 
disposes of that act through punishment 
for the violation of a law. Man may do 
good or evil; God disposes all in harmony 
of the law of justice; and whatever takes 
place in this world is disposed of through 
the disposition of God through the princi- 
ple of equity, the attribute that belongs 
to the Godhead, the eternal foundation of 
the univei se. 

Nebuchadnezzer, the king of ancient 
Babylon, one of the finest cities in the old 
world, while in his earthly glory, made 
great proposals to himself, as to how he 
should rule the kingdoms of the earth, 
and that his power might ascend into the 
heavens and bring the stars to his com- 



260 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

mand, and the inhabitants of the world 
bow down to him through the glittering 
scepter of his sovereignty; and when made 
king of that beautiful city, he puffed him- 
self up as if he were an incarnation of the 
god Nebo, and described the glory of the 
great Babylon, and of the temple Bor- 
sippa, which was made to shine as the 
stars of heaven. Thousands of square 
bricks have been found stamped with his 
name, and while the Israelites w^ere in the 
seventy years 7 captivity this king had a 
dream, and a young boy, a Jew by the 
name of Daniel, was brought before the 
king to interpret the dream, and Daniel 
gave the king the interpretation of the 
dream, and with all the counsel that this 
noble boy gave the king, it fell to the 
ground unnoticed by the king; and through 
the pride and vanity of this king, he 
still continues to propose, and did propose, 
and walked in the palace of the kingdom 
of Babylon. The king spake and said, ; ' Is 
not this great Babylon, that I have built 
for the house of the kingdom, by the might 
of my power, and for the honor of my ma- 
jesty ?" While the word was in the king's 



Man Proposes, But God Disposes. 261 

mouth, God speaks from heaven, and says, 
4 ' Oh king, the kingdom is departed from 
thee; 77 thou hast proposed; a voice from 
heaven says through the principle of jus- 
tice and equity, I will dispose in harmony 
with the disposition that evolves from the 
immutable law of God. And now, God, 
the disposer, disposes of all these propo- 
sals that the king made. Man may be in 
his glory while in the attitude of pro- 
posing, then God in His infinite wisdom 
disposes the wicked works of man, and 
now comes the disposition from God, the 
disposer of all things: O king Nebuchad- 
nezzer, thou Lucifer, Son of the Morning, 
how art thou cut down to the ground, 
which didst weaken the nations, for thou 
hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into 
heaven, I will exalt my throne above the 
stars of God; I will sit also upon the mount 
of the congregation, in the sides of the 
north; I will ascend above the heights of 
the clouds; I will be like the Most High; 
yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to 
the sides of the pit. They that see thee shall 
narrowly look upon thee, and consider 
thee, saying, Is this the man that made 



262 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

the earth to tremble, that did shake king- 
doms, that made the world as a wilder- 
ness, and destroyed the cities thereof, that 
opened not the house of the prisoners ? 

Now comes the bitter cup that this king 
must drink as his reward from the propo- 
sals made by him. Grod, the disposer, 
drives this wicked king from men into the 
field, to be a companion of the beasts 
of the field, and there to eat grass as 
as oxen, and remain seven years in that 
condition, and his body was wet with the 
dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown 
like eagle's feathers, and his nails like 
birds' claws. 

After the death of this wonderful king, 
his son Belshazzer was made king in his 
father's place. He ruled with an iron 
hand, and forgot that he was a man, and 
built his castles until they reached the 
starry heavens through his proposals that 
he proposed through the wickedness and 
vanity of this king that was soon to be 
scattered to the four winds of the earth by 
Grod, the disposer. 

Five hundred and thirty-eight years be- 
fore Christ, Belshazzer the king, as we find 



Man Proposes, But Gcd Disposes. 263 

it in Daniel v. 1, made a great feast to a 
thousand of his lords, and drank wine be- 
fore the thousand, with his princes, his 
wives and his concubines, and praised the 
gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of 
iron, of wood and of stone, which see not, 
nor hear, nor know, and the God in whose 
hand thy breath is hast thou not glorified. " 

Now God, the disposer, speaks from the 
spirit world to this wicked king through 
the hand of a spirit messenger, and wrote 
upon the wall, Thou art weighed in the bal- 
ances, and art found wanting; thy kingdom 
is divided, and given to the Medes and 
Persians. When the king saw the writing, 
his countenance was changed, and his 
thoughts troubled him, so that the joints 
of his loins were loosed, and his knees 
smote one against another. And in that 
night was Belshazzer the king of the Chal- 
deans slain. This was the end of the gov- 
ernment of this king upon this earth, by 
not making proposals in harmony with 
God, the disposer of all things in this uni- 
verse. 

God made man to act with his free will 
power. Progression in man is evidence of 



264 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

itself that this statement is true, from the 
fact that man cannot progress without act- 
ing, and the privilege of acting on the part 
of man, to make it a basis of law, must be 
within the circle of his free will power, un- 
molested by any power. This, and this 
alone, makes the man a fit subject for cul- 
tivation, through the energy of his own 
ability, by practical study, and this element 
born in man for that purpose, which is evi- 
dence of itself, that man is a responsible 
being. 

The voice of God is heard through the 
things that are made, and nature's law to 
man, and speaks with a silent voice to man 
of this world, to think well in advance of 
any proposal that He might make, that it 
might be in harmony with the will of God. 
The disposer, with the disposition of God 
in disposing with the acts of man through 
His proposing, and the fruit thereof might 
be life and not death as man's reward. 

Proposals by man are a necessity in the ac- 
tivity of a business world. But be wise 
how man makes them. If made with good 
intent, for the good of man, then a reward 
is in store for man ; if not made in good in- 



Man Proposes, But God Disposes. 265 

tent then man must reap what he sowed, 
and the reaping is death. 

This was and is the case of the Jews as a 
nation, when they proposed as a people to 
have Jesus Christ murdered. It was evil 
in the intent on the part of the Jews as a 
nation. And now they are reaping death 
in everlasting fire, "prepared for the devil 
and his angels." This Scripture just quo- 
ted in the xxv. Chapter of Matthew, is an 
allegory ; the strongest kind of a figure to 
illustrate the punishment of the Jew^s as a 
nation, for saying to Pilate, the governor : 
"His blood be on us and on our children.' 7 
Hxnv literal this Scripture is being fulfilled, 
and is still being fulfilled through this 
proposition proposed by the Jews as a na- 
tion. They were in A. D. 70, cursed by 
the law of justice and equity, by being 
scattered among the nations of the earth 
without a nationality, until the fullness of 
the Gentiles comes in, asTPaul says, at the 
end of this Gentile age or world. 

Matt. xii. 32. " But whosoever speaketh 
against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be for- 
given him, neither in this world" — that is, 
the Jewish age or world, when this w T oe was 

17 



266 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

pronounced upon the Jews as a nation, for 
accusing Jesus Christ of casting out devils 
by Beelzebub, the prince of devils, instead 
of through the spirit of God, and likewise 
saying, tc His blood be upon us and upon 
our children," — ct neither in the world to 
come," that is, the present Gentile age 
or world. According to the terms of Scrip- 
ture, this is called the unpardonable sin, 
and it is ; the Jews were not pardoned back 
into the Jewish world, neither will they be 
till the close of the present Gentile world, 
Then they, as a nation, will be pardoned 
from this sin, by suffering the full penalty 
and paying the last farthing through pun- 
ishment; then, as Paul says, all Israel will 
be saved and become a nationality, in the 
land of Palestine, at the end of this present 
Gentile world. That will be the end of this 
unpardonable sin, spoken of in Scripture. 
How true it is, the wages of sin are death. 
This word death is a figure to illustrate the 
remorse and condemnation resting upon 
the soul during the punishment due sin. 
Hence, this is the case of the Jews as a na- 
tion. For over eighteen hundred years this 
Jewish nation has been scattered among the 



Man Proposes, But God Disposes. 267 

nations of the earth, and are still in the 
same condition, suffering for wrong pro- 
posals and the violation of the law of God. 
But at the end of this Gentile world tlie 
Jewish nation will be released from this na- 
tional .punishment, in harmony with the 
strict terms of Scripture. 

To do justice to this case in giving a 
proper interpretation of this word Beelze- 
bub and Belial, we will give it as we find . 
it in Scripture. In the first place they are 
borrowed words compounded together ; the 
words found in the Hindoo dogma. In our 
Bible the word Beelzebub and Belial are 
not to mean a conscious spirit entity. 
Scripture teaches that these words mean 
something worthless, wicked men. 

Deuteronomy xiii. 13. t4 Certain men, 
the children of Belial, meaning Beelzebub, 
are gone out from among you, and have 
withdrawn the inhabitants of their city, 
saying, Let us go and serve other Gods, 
which ye have not known." 

Judges xix. 22; 4C Now, as they were 
making their hearts merry, behold ! the 
men of the city, certain sons of Belial, beset 
the house round about, and beat at the 



268 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible, 

door, and spake to the master of the house; 
the old man saying : Bring forth the man 
that came into thine house, that we may 
know him. 7 ' 

Hence, Scripture is evidence of itself, 
that the words Belial and Beelzebub do not 
mean a conscious, intelligent spirit entity, 
called a devil or a prince of devils. These 
so-called devils were wicked, worthless 
men; bent on mischief, committing sin on 
high places as well as low. If we are to 
understand Scripture to mean that Belial 
and Beelzebub, the prince of devils, are in- 
telligent spirit entities, devils ; concious as 
to what they are doing. If this be true, 
then there are thousands of them to make 
up the family of devils. Hence, if this be 
true, where did they come from, and who 
is responsible for their existence ? Let the 
Scripture answer. 

Col. i. 16, 17. 4t For by Him, that is 
God, were all things created that are in 
heaven, and that are in earth ; visible and 
invisible, whether they be thrones, or 
dominions, or principalities, or powers ; all 
things were created by Him, and for Him, 
and He is before all things, and by Him all 
things consist." 



Man Proposes, But God Disposes. 269 

Hence, if it be true, that spiritual con- 
scious devils do exist as entities, then this 
Scripture is evidence of itself that God 
created them, and for Him. But to har- 
monize the principles that govern Scrip- 
ture, it is not true. 

But we will return to our subject. In 
looking over the back history, and the pres- 
ent condition of the Jews as a nation, they 
are still suffering the pangs of everlasting 
torment, by losing their nationality and 
still in the same comdition, by making 
wicked propositions in the Jewish world 
before they fell. But God, the disposer of 
their wicked proposals, passed judgment 
upon them. They still worship the old 
covenant through the disposition of their 
proposals; which is the letter, death and 
hell, until the end of this Gentile world and 
the beginning of the Millennial age. Then 
the prophecy of this nation in regard to 
this matter, will come to an end, by accept- 
ing the new covenant in harmony with the 
New Testament ; then the old covenant, 
the letter ; death and hell, will have its 
eternal burial from the Jewish nation, 
never to be resurrected. 



270 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

What an ordeal this nation lias had to 
pass through, to make them fit subjects for 
the kingdom of heaven ; through the ele- 
ments incorporated in the constitution of 
the new covenant. What a lesson this is 
for the world to consider, in this age of the 
nineteenth century. Nations have been 
born and prospered in culture and civiliza- 
tion, by consideration of good proposals. 
And nation after nation have fallen, and 
great has been the fall through the dispo- 
sition of wrong and wicked proposals with- 
out due consideration. Sin has found them 
out ; the law must now be honored ; justice 
and equity must be dealt out to sustain 
the integrity of the great and noble princi- 
ple that evolves from it. 



CHAPTER XV. 



KESPONSIBILITY OF GOD TO MAN, AND MAN 
TO GOD. 



C^CRIPTURE informs man that God is 
\!J responsible for the creation of this 
earth and all things thereupon. God as 
an infinite entity and power, who created 
all things after the counsel of his own will 
and purpose, made God by his own law of 
justice and equity, responsible for the cre- 
ation of this earth and all things there- 
upon. 

Col. i, 16, 17: 4t For by him were all 
things created, that are in heaven, and that 
are in earth, visible and invisible, whether 
they be thrones, or dominions, or princi- 
palities, or powers; all things were created 
by him and for him." Verse 17: cc And 
He is before all things, and by Him all 
things consist." This Scripture settles this 
question, as there is no possible chance for 
an argument. It takes in everything. 
Why, it takes in this poor miserabledevil. 



272 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

Is not this too bad, to take in this poor 
devil, that God is responsible for his crea- 
tion. If so, then God is responsible for 
this poor devil's conduct in the ruination 
of man. 

Question. My dear brother, are yon not 
too severe in presenting this argument to 
the world ? Perchance it might cause some 
of our very pious brothers and sisters to 
shed tears to think that God had anything 
to do in creating this poor miserable crea- 
ture of the earth. 

Answer. Dear friend, I am writing at 
book, and am working hard and honest to 
get at the truth. I am not advocating my 
own doctrine, but the doctrine of the Bi- 
ble; and in view of this fact then, dear 
friend, do not feel offended at me, for the 
Scripture that I have just quoted will sus- 
tain my position. I trust you will read it 
carefully and accept the truth revealed 
from it, for I do think it will do you good. 

Oh, ignorance of the race, the mother of 
the devil and all mischief and misery of 
the earth, how much longer will you be 
rocked in this cradle of ignorance, advo- 
cated by some in this age of thought and 



Responsibility of God and Man . 2 7 3 

culture and development of mind in the 
nineteenth century. 

Question. Do you think that there is no 
such devil as some of our religious institu- 
tions advocate \ 

Answer. When I was younger, and 
rocked in this orthodox cradle, I believed 
it: but as soon as I got out of it, by my 
own choice and free will power, the scales 
of ignorance fell from my eyes, and be- 
hold, what do you think I saw \ I saw 
this devil a mere scarecrow, a decoration, 
adorning some of our pulpits in this beau- 
tiful world of ours. 

Question. Some of our clergymen who 
have received the best college education, 
and pretend to be the best subjects to ex- 
pound and interpret Scripture, tell us that 
the devil was a fallen angel, who was once 
a holy angel, and through disobedience 
fell from his holy state and became a devil. 

Answer. My dear friend, in reply I will 
say to you, that doctrine is very thin; that 
may do for a hireling, but not for an hon- 
est man. Why, my dear sir, that will not 
stand the criticism of a child ten years old. 
We will examine this case in regard to this 



274 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

question. The immutable law of cause 
and effect is a part of the Godhead, and he 
creates all things by and through that law. 
Now comes the question, If it be true that 
the devil was once a holy angel, and fell 
from that condition, is it not positive proof 
by law, that he was made a devil on the 
start, and only to be developed through 
the evil nature in his being, and the ele- 
ment that God gave the angel when he cre- 
ated him. If this be true, this angel never 
w r as made a holy angel, then by law he was 
made imperfect, as man of the earth is 
made, and subject to fall and sin, as man 
of the earth. Then in view of this, then 
all the angels of heaven w^ere made just 
like this holy angel that fell. If this be 
true, then heaven is filled with devils, only 
to be developed. If this be the case, they 
are dangerous messengers for God to send 
to earth to educate man in the path of vir- 
tue. In view of this, and by the law of 
God, which is final, then God is responsi- 
ble for creating this devil, as all things He 
made. 

We will go back to our subject. The 
principle of law as revealed from Scrip- 



Responsibility of God and Man . 275 

ture, teach man that God made man to co- 
operate with Him in this world, to con- 
summate the purpose of God in relation to 
the human race. God has his part to per- 
form; and man his part. God never fails 
in doing his part in this co-operation, but 
man makes the failure every time by vio- 
lating the law, and through this condition 
is produced as an effect, misery anri cor- 
ruption to the race. We will make a point 
in this case before we proceed farther, and 
I want to impress upon the mind of the 
reader this one fact, that God is not re- 
sponsible for man in not performing his 
part as long as man is let alone to act with 
his will power, and capable of performing* 
his part in harmony in the co-operation 
with God. God has in his infinite wisdom 
adjusted his laws to the intuition and rea- 
son of man, that will leave him inexcusa- 
ble to God for not performing his part in 
co-operation with God for the good of the 
race, and makes man responsible to God 
for the deportment of the man. God is 
responsible for creating man, but not re- 
sponsible because the race degenerates, for 
it was not the purpose of God that the race 



276 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

should degenerate by violating his law, for 
he has made it consistent in harmony with 
his purpose and will for man to obey. If 
conditions were of such a character that 
man could not obey, then God by his law 
of equity would be responsible; but as this 
is not the case, then man by law and for 
his own good must reap what he sows. 

Question. Did God know when he made 
man, that he would disobey and degen- 
erate ? 

Answer. God knew all about it. 

Question. If God knew all about it, 
do'nt that make God responsible for the 
degeneration of the race ? 

Answer. No, not in the least; God made 
man to obey, and made it possible for him 
to obey if he would. God did not inter- 
fere with his will power; this matter God 
left to man absolutely, which makes man 
responsible for all the Ignorance and cor- 
ruption that the race is now suffering. 
What did it ? That immortal word, Diso- 
bedience. 

Question. If it be true that there is a 
conscious entity, the devil, has he been 
persecuted through the Scripture ? 



Responsibility of God and Man. 277 

Answer. My friend, for the argument's 
sake, we will consider this question. Yes, 
if it be true that there is a literal devil, 
then this being called a devil is by Scrip- 
ture the worst persecuted being mentioned 
in the Bible. By Scripture the devil is 
called a liar and the father of lies. Scrip- 
ture says there is no good in him, and hell 
is prepared for the devil and his angels. 
Scripture says that God made this devil, 
and made him for himself, and nobody's 
business. And when he gets through 
with him, he will turn this devil into hell 
forever. God did not give him any chance 
to reform and go to heaven; God did not 
make a sacrifice for his salvation. Af- 
ter making a tool out of him and used 
him for certain purposes to carry out 
the plans of God, and made him a great 
benefactor to bring about the salvation of 
the world, God then turns the devil into 
eternal hell. What a loving God this is. 

Then the same Bible teaches that the 
devil has told the truth, and by telling the 
truth, mixed with his lies, made him the 
strongest and the most necessary lever to 
carry out the purpose of God, by opening 



278 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

the eyes of Adam and Eve, that they might 
fall and people the earth, and bring man 
into a condition to know good from evil. 
And then enter Judas Iseariot after the 
sop, to betray the son of man, to bring about 
a sacrifice to redeem the race of man. And 
the devil was the very means of this sacri- 
fice to redeem the race, and without this 
devil, if Scripture be true, the redemption 
for man never would have been made. 
And then when God gets through using 
this devil for his purpose, behold ! God 
leaves the devil out in the cold, and turns 
him into hell ; after doing all the good he 
done for man. This Bible devil, as some 
have it, is too thin. It will not wash down 
the man that reads and thinks for himself, 
only them that are duped by the hireling 
of this world. 

Question. Was this devil the means of 
all the misery that man has suffered from 
the beginning of the world ? 

Answer. If this story of the devil be 
true, he is not the means of the suffering of 
the race. He was the means of the fall of 
Adam and Eve, so as to carry out the pur- 
pose of God, to people the earth. Accord- 



Responsibility of God and Man. 2 7 9 

ing to this story, the devil was an essential 
agent in the hands of God, and made for 
that purpose, to carry out the eternal pur- 
pose of God in regard to this world. For 
without this devil the earth would have re- 
mained a barren wilderness, and not a man 
to till the ground, as God purposed it 
should be. If this be true, the devil should 
not be cursed and sent to hell, for doing a 
work so beneficial and noble in its charac- 
ter ; in helping God to execute His purpose 
in regard to this earth and race of man, 
which was in the infinite mind, millions of 
years prior to the birth of this world. 

Question. When God made the earth, 
did he make the devil at the same time, 
or was he a fallen angel three thousand 
years afterward ? 

Answer. If this story of the devil be 
true, he was made a devil when God made 
the earth and man, for the Scripture 
teaches us that the devil was on hand when 
God made Adam and Eve, so as to help 
God carry out His purpose, in regard to 
man and the earth. 

Let us examine some Scripture in regard 
to this question, and see if the devil was 



280 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

in reality a great help to God in getting* 
Adam and Eve in a proper condition to 
begin the race. as God prescribed in His own 
purpose and law. 

Genesis iii. Now the serpent, meaning* 
this orthodox devil, if any truth in this 
story, was more subtle than any beast of 
the field. It does not say that he was a 
beast, but more subtle than any beast. 
Now, as this story runs, it appears that the 
devil appeared to the woman with his piece 
well learned, and said to the woman : 
14 God said, ye shall not eat of every tree 
of the garden," and the woman said unto 
the serpent, the devil, c ' We may eat of the 
fruit of the trees of the garden, but of the 
fruit of the tree which is in the midst of 
the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat 
of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die/' 

By the run of this story we do not know 
whether God and the serpent had an un- 
derstanding with each other, as they did 
in the case of Job, as to get Adam and Eve 
in a condition so as to be capable to start 
the race as God purposed it should be, and 
we see in this case, as the Scripture gives 
it to us, that God performed His part in 



Responsibility of God and Man. 281 

this event, and the devil performed his 
part ; and when they got through, and this 
great event consummated, the earth re- 
joiced ; that the barren womb of the earth 
could now bring forth its offspring, in har- 
mony with the purpose of God. What a 
noble work was done through the co-opera- 
tion of God and the serpent ! This event 
should be written upon the walls of eter- 
nity, as a memorial to the race of man, and 
how-they came into existence. And the end 
of this effect as final, crowning the race 
with eternal happiness to the honor and 
glory of God. 

Verse 4 : k c And the serpent said unto the 
woman, Ye shall not surely die." Here 
the devil told a lie, and by the nature of 
this case it was necessary for the devil to 
tell that lie, for it was the means to de- 
ceive Eve. 

Verse 5 : ' 4 For God doth know that in 
the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall 
be opened, and ye shall be as gods, know- 
ing good and evil." Here the devil told 
the truth, and through this truth they 
ate, and their eyes were opened. Once 
blind, but now they see; the scales of ig- 

18 



296 Dager^s Interpretation of the Bible. 

norance as to their knowing the purpose 
of God, fell from their eyes, and they were 
brought into a condition by the means of 
God and the devil, that Adam and Eve 
might now begin the work in this noble 
event of peopling the earth, in harmony 
with the eternal purpose of God, millions 
of years prior to the birth of this beautiful 
world. And in view of all this, as we find 
it in Scripture, when God got through with 
this devil, and the noble work that he 
helped God to perform in bringing about 
his purpose, God then cursed the .serpent, 
the devil, above everything on earth, and 
God said to him, c ; Upon thy belly shalt 
thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the 
days of thy life." It appears by this that 
the devil is going to die some time in the 
future. Won't that be too bad ? Why, 
that will destroy eternal misery, for if the 
devil dies, the fire of hell will surely go 
out. 

Question. If this story be true, the devil 
is more holy and merciful than God ? 

Answer. Yes, if true, the devil is bet- 
ter than God, and more honorable in his 
deportment of life. Nowhere in Scripture 



Responsibility of God and Man . 283 

can be found that this devil would stoop 
down and be guilty of doing to God as 
God did to him — to curse him for doing 
one of the wisest acts found in Scripture, 
and without this act performed by the ser- 
pent, God would have made a failure, and 
his purposes fallen into nonentity. 

Question. What do you think of this 
story ? Give me your opinion in regard 
to it. 

Answer. You will find in another chap- 
ter of this book I am writing, the inter- 
pretation and application of this allegory, 
as I understand it through the principles 
that govern Scripture. As far as this story 
of a literal devil is concerned, I consider it 
a farce and nonsensical, without a princi- 
ple as its basis, beneath the notice of the 
cultured mind of this age. This may do 
for a dishonest person, a Pharisee, a hypo- 
crite, a hireling, that wants to keep the 
people ignorant, and dupe them for the 
sake of a bread and butter policy, with no 
honor, and that will ' 4 compass sea and 
land to make one prosolyte, and when 
made, he becomes a two-fold child of hell. " 
These are the kind that 4t strain at a gnat, 
and swallow a camel." 



284 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

Question. Is God responsible for creat- 
ing this devil, and for all of his acts ? 

Answer. If it be true that there is a 
devil of this character, and the Scripture 
sustains it to be true, then it follows in 
harmony with the law of God that he is 
responsible for the creation of this devil, 
and also responsible for all the acts and 
deeds performed by him, which is and can 
be sustained by Scripture; and in view of 
this, if this Scripture teaching of this ques- 
tion be true and reliable, then it must be 
true that the story of this devil is true. 
We will examine some Scripture in regard 
to this question. 

Col. i. 16, 17: t4 For by Him were all 
things created, that are in heaven, and 
that are in earth, visible and invisible, 
principalities or powers; all things were 
created by Him, and for Him, and He is 
before all things, and by Him all things- 
consist." 

This Scripture covers the entire ground, 
no room is left for an argument; it is final. 
It says, ' 4 All things in heaven and earth, 
visible and invisible, were created by Him, 
and for Him." Then this is proof that 



Responsibility of God and Man . 285 

God created the devil, for lie was one of 
the things created within the circle of 
heaven and earth, and it says he created 
this thing called the devil, for himself, and 
it says, And God is before all things, and 
by Him all things consist. Does the bigot 
and the bigoted man of the earth want 
anything more clear and positive than 
that \ — is there not enough in this Scrip- 
ture to clear away the atmosphere of the 
bigoted man that the scales might fall from 
his eyes, and evolve from the gutter of ig- 
norance. We have so many self -conceited 
people of this world to contend with, cul- 
tivated with a bigoted selfish idea, gener- 
ated from a narrow mind, from the lack of 
a cultivated brain, or not enough brain to 
comprehend a truth from the hand of God. 
These are the ones with this selfish narrow 
idea that it takes everything in the uni- 
verse, even the skunk v to constitute the en- 
tity of the God of this universe, when it 
says in plain words, in the 17th verse, that 
God is before all things, and by Him all 
things consist; not a part, but all things. 
I wonder if the bigot thinks there is any 
chance in this for an argument. Why, 



286 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

yes, tl e bigot thinks so; he would argue 
against God with a tea spoonful of brains, 
and imagine himself a Goliath of the earth, 
and strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel, 
if possible. Examine the purposes of the 
infinite mind as far as we are able by the 
works of God, and its operations upon 
earth by his law of cause and effect, and 
then with the co-operation of the infinite 
with the finite impressed upon the instinct 
of man, with this in view, how dare man 
advocate to the world that God is not re- 
sponsible for the creation of all things ? 
— and in view of this, we have in this age 
of thought and progression, men that rise 
up in the dignity of their manhood with 
an idea, void of principle and reason, and 
say to the world that God is not responsi- 
ble for the creation of all things, destroy- 
ing the principle of justice and equity, the 
attributes of God, and making God out a 
non-entity; for without a responsibility 
God is void of an entity. 

If Scripture be true in regard to this 
devil, God, by His own law, is responsible 
for all His acts. Scripture says that God 
made the devil for Himself, and to co-op- 



Responsibility of God and Man. 287 

erate with Him, so as to carry out the pur- 
pose of God in regard to man. According 
to Scripture, God did not make it possible 
for him to carry out His purposes with 
man without some one to co-operate with 
Him, and in this case He takes the devil to 
act his part with God, to help execute His 
purpose in regard to Adam and Eve, so as 
to give them the condition to start the race. 
Not but what God could have so made His 
plans and conditions to execute this alone, 
but, according to Scripture, He made the 
conditions of such a character that God was 
compelled by His own law, adjusted to this 
case, to have a co-operator, to co-operate 
with Him in bringing this event to pass ; 
and in view of this, He made the devil for 
this express purpose, responsible for mak- 
ing him, and responsible for his conduct. 
If Scripture is reliable, then God made the 
devil for this purpose and no other, and 
when He gets through with him He 
turns him into hell, to crawl upon his 
belly and eat dust all the days of his life. 
Well, I am glad the poor creature will die, 
for nowhere in Scripture do Ave find any 
pro vision made to redeem him, as we find 



288 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

for man. If we can rely upon this Scrip- 
ture, and as finite mind considers this case, 
it appears to be unmerciful and ungodly in 
God to use the devil ; a creature of His own 
creation, as He did. Why, if man should 
use a fellows man as God used the devil, 
God would denounce man as a human 
fiend. 

So reader, you can believe as much of 
this Scripture as you see fit in regard to 
this case. As far as I am concerned in this 
case, I do not believe the story. I believe 
in the God of this universe, and place Him 
upon a higher plane of justice, mercy and 
love, than we find in this Scripture, touch- 
ing this case just considered. 

Question. Pardon me for asking an- 
other question in regard to this devil and 
Job. The case of Job and the devil is 
somewhat a mystery to me, and if you can 
give me some light in regard to it, I wish 
you would do so. 

Answer. The story you referred to we 
find in the book of Job. The author of this 
book is unknown by all Bible scholars, and 
left as an unsettled question ; and when it 
was written and where it was written is a 



JRespon sibilities of God a nd Ma n. 289 

mystery to the world. Whatever this book 
may be, there is one thing certain in this 
story of Job, there is a great deal of practical 
knowledge to be derived from its contents, 
in our every day life. The nature of this 
book as I comprehend it, is in my opinion 
a theological discussion of high merit, or 
it can be viewed as theatrical in character. 
The tone and nature that sounds through 
this long story of Job sounds like a beau- 
tiful and popular high-merited play, with 
a number of actors to take part, and per- 
formed in one of the great popular theaters 
of the city of ancient Babylon. This is 
only my opinion. In the first place it is 
not a Jewish writing, it belongs to some 
other nation. I do not consider this book 
a reality, it may be a discussion, or a play 
in a popular theater of Babylon or some- 
thing else. 

We will consider the story in regard to 
Job, and in doing so, we will be as liberal 
as justice will permit, and give it all the 
merit and credit it will bear, being it is 
registered in the Bible as canonical. It is 
true, there is a principle in this story very 
significent and edifying to the mind, and 



290 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

profitable to man ; if practiced in his every 
day life. And in view of this we often find 
principles of the same nature coming from 
the contents of fictitious novels ; with no re- 
ality, but a story. I do not say that this 
is the case of this story, as we find it in the 
book of Job ; neither will I pass judgment 
upon it, only upon the contents as I find it 
in an honest consideration. I am in duty 
bound by the law of God, which I owe to 
God and the welfare of man, to criticise 
the contents of this story as I find it. And 
without an honest criticism passed upon 
all things in this world, the world will re- 
main in ignorance, and shrowded in dark- 
ness for the want of some bold and fearless 
persons that dare do right, and hoist the 
flag of God's eternal truth, regardless to 
the final results. 

Job i. 1 : "There was a man in the 
land of Uz, whose name was Job, and that 
man was perfect and upright, and one that 
feared God and eschewed evil." 

Verse 2 : " And there w^ere born unto 
him seven sons and three daughters." 

Verse 6 : " Now there was a day when 
the sons of God came to present themselves 



Responsibilities of God and Man. 291 

before the Lord, and Satan came also 
among them," 

It appears that the devil knew when the 
sons of God were to come before the Lord, 
so the devil made up his mind to come also, 
and take a part in this meeting, and if pos- 
sible, he would see it he could set the Lord 
against Job, for the devil knew that Job 
was a perfect and upright man. 

Verse 7 : "And the Lord said unto 
Satan, Whence comest thou V As if the 
Lord did not know, but as the nature of 
this story runs, it would appear as if the 
Lord was playing blind and very ignorant 
as to where Satan came from, so the Lord 
said unto Satan, tl Whence comest thou V 
That kind of talk did not sound like the 
great infinite God, that says in Scripture, 
that He knows all things from the begin- 
ning to the end, before they take place. 
This God might have been a Hindoo god 
called Seva, being He did not know where 
Satan came from, Now Satan says in reply, 
and said : c c From going to and fro in the 
earth, and from walking up and down in 
it." It appears that the devil was a very 
ambitious and active creature here on 



292 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

earth ; and in this case it appears that he 
and the Lord was on friendly terms, and 
this meeting together was very congenial 
and pleasant in its character, Notwith- 
standing, the Lord in this case, if it be the 
true God, is acting very ignorant with 
Satan ; pretending not to know what Satan 
wanted. And in case the Lord did know, 
and at the same time pretending to the devil 
that he did not know, made God, accord- 
ing to the nature of this case, a bear-faced 
hypocrite, which makes it positive proof 
that this God is not the God that Scripture 
holds up to the world, and makes this book 
uncanonical. 

Verse 8 : c ' And the Lord said unto 
Satan, hast thou considered My servant 
Job r 

What a foolish question this is for God to 
ask Satan, when he knew, if he was God, all 
the thoughts of Satan before hand. What 
a farce for the religious world to advocate 
to man this story as a reality, and canoni- 
cal in its character. That there is none 
like him in the earth ; a perfect and an up- 
right man ; one that feareth God and 
escheweth evil. In this Scripture God in- 



Responsibilities of God and Man. 293 

traduces to the devil a perfect man. This 
is a great word, perfect ; if so, Job was the 
only man that ever lived, outside of Jesus 
Christ, that had the title of being a per- 
fect man. How insignificant this story is, 
to be attributable to God, whose wisdom 
and knowledge is unlimited, and knows all 
things before they come to pass. 

Verse 9. Now the devil begins to argue 
this question, and proposes to debate it 
with God. God listens to the argument of 
Satan, and when he got through with his 
logic the Lord said to the devil, ' c Behold, 
all that he hath is in thy power, only upon 
himself put not forth thine hand." It ap- 
pears that this God had power over Satan 
to let him go so far, and no farther. 

How inconsistent this story relates itself 
to man, in opposition to the principles con- 
tained in the Godhead. Scripture teaches 
us that God will protect the upright man 
from all harm, and keep his enemies in 
peace with him. 44 No power, devil or man 
shall hurt My chosen one, the upright in 
heart." And in view^ of this fact, God in 
opposition to His own law, violates it, by 
letting this so-called miserable devil have 



294 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

power to abuse and cause the destruction 
of all of His property and all of his chil- 
dren, and gave satan power over the heav- 
ens, and caused fire to come down and 
burnt up the sheep and the servants ; and 
caused the wind to blow and destroy the 
house, and killed all of his children, to 
please the devil, and see if Job would curse 
God. God knew that Job would not curse 
Him, because he was a perfect upright man; 
for there was no use in trying the faith of 
Job, he could not be made any better; for he 
was perfect then, and that was all that 
God could expect of him. So far the devil 
made a failure, but dissatisfied and wanted 
to try Job once more, by smiting him with 
boils. 

Chapter ii. Verse 1: iC Again there was 
a day when the sons of God came to pre- 
sent themselves before the Lord, and Satan 
came also among them, to present himself 
before the Lord. v 

It appears that Satan went away for a 
time, but kept posted to these meetings 
that the sons of God attended at different 
times. The sons of God met again, and 
Satan came to, and apparently the devil 



Responsibilities of God and Man. W 2 ( ,)T> 

was on good terms with this Clod and the 
sons of (rod. 

Verse 2 : ct And the Lord said unto 
Satan, from whence comest thou V 

It appears that God was surprised to see 
the devil at hand, and asked, ;t From 
whence comest thou ?" Oh ! Consistency, 
thou art a jewel. But the story of this 
God and Satan is a farce or myth, and 
should be removed from Scripture, as un- 
canonical, and not betray and keep the 
world in ignorance, and make man believe 
it to be a reality, when in fact it is a mon- 
strosity and unnatural production. 

And Satan gave the Lord the same kind 
of an answer as he did before. 

Verse 3: t; And the Lord said unto Sa- 
tan, Hast thou considered my servant 
Job ?'■ This God must have had a poor 
memory, for only a short time prior to this 
meeting, the sons of God had one similar 
to this, and the same question that the 
Lord asked the devil in the first meeting, 
He repeats to Satan in this meeting. In 
view of this fact, the nature that evolves 
itself from this question is not in harmony 
with the fundamental principles coming 



296 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

from the fountain of God, that underlies 
and is the basis for Scripture to rest upon, 
and any event or question drawn from 
Scripture by man, that is not in harmony 
with this is erroneous, and not reliable as 
truthful Scripture. 

Verse 4: Now the devil is trying to move 
heaven and earth to persuade God to let 
him smite Job once more. 44 And Satan 
answered the Lord and said, Skin for skin, 
yea, all that a man hath he will give for 
his life." That logic is true. Satan ap- 
peared to understand the nature of man, 
and told the truth in this case. 

Verse 5 : " But put forth thine hand 
now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and 
he will curse thee to thy face.' 7 Verse 6; 
The devil has conquered; the Lord has 
yielded, and given Satan another opportu- 
nity to pester and almost take the life of 
Job, that perfect and upright man of God, 
a perfect saint and jewel to his Father, God, 
and precious to Him who hath sworn to 
Himself to protect and reward him with 
the blessings of heaven, and be about him 
as a wall of fire to protect him against the 
evils of this world. And in view of this, 



Responsibilities of God and Man. 297 

behold, and see what this God says to Sa- 
tan, and see how unmerciful He is to this 
perfect man Job, the dear servant of God, 
and now God gives him over to Satan, to be 
pestered by that so-called wicked devil. 
Is there any consistency in this case ? If 
this be true, then this God represented 
here is worse in his nature, and more wick- 
ed than the devil himself, from the fact 
in harmony with law, this God is responsi- 
ble not only for the creation of this devil, 
but for the acts of this devil in tormenting 
this perfect man, Job, without any cause 
or reason. L 4 And the Lord said unto Sa- 
tan, Behold, he is in thine hand; but save 
his life." God will not allow the devil to 
take the life of Job, but you may torment 
nim almost to death ; but leave one drop of 
blood in him so he can revive and live, for 
I know he is a good man, and he never will 
curse me. What a farce ! — rather hard to 
try a man that way to see if he loves God. 
We should not expect this from that God 
whose name is love. It looks more like the 
Hindoo god Seva, the god of the lower 
world, the destroyer and tormentor of all 
things upon earth, according to the doc- 



298 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

trine of Hindooism. By reading the bal- 
ance of this story you will learn how Sa- 
tan went on under the instructions of this 
God, who alone is responsible for the en- 
tire event. There was no responsibility 
resting upon the devil in this event; he 
only did what this God gave him permis- 
sion to do in this case. The devil was ex- 
cusable, and not held responsible from the 
hand of this God, for the devil was true to 
God, and did only what God told him to 
do, and he rUd it, and no more. 

When this story of Job is considered by 
an impartial view from the development of 
mind and culture in this age of the nine- 
teenth century, it must vanish and be null 
and void as a reality, in the disposition of 
the developed mind in this age. What a 
low and degenerated position and condi- 
tion the world has placed God in, to be- 
lieve that the God of this universe, the im- 
mortal, the entity of purity and holiness, 
and cannot look upon sin with the least 
degree of allowance, should lower his 
eternal standard of purity, and be found 
in company with the devil in the land of 
Uz, and there co-operating together like 



Responsibilities of God and Man. 299 

two human fiends, and planning how to 
afflict and torment that perfect and up- 
right man Job, without any cause or prov- 
ocation. Oh, man of the earth, look above 
this monstrosity, an unnatural production, 
the seed that generated from the wicked 
fiend of the earth, and not the element that 
comes from the hand of God. Grod is love, 
and cannot be accessory to sin, when he 
has promised in Scripture that he would 
destroy it. 



CHAPTER XVI. 



THE INFINITE PURPOSE OF GOD. 



THIS question of the purpose of God, is 
a momentous principle in its magni- 
tude. The purpose of God is the greatest 
question for our consideration that evolves 
from Scripture — significant in its charac- 
ter, and upon it hangs the destiny of the 
race and the entire earth. The infinite 
purpose of God is not on a level with the 
purpose of finite man; it is immutable in 
its character, and cannot change, as the 
intent involves perfection, the attribute 
that belongs to God. 

We have no positive proof as to the pur- 
poses of God coming direct from the mouth 
of the infinite, from the fact that God is 
incomprehensible and invisible to man, and 
his counsel past finding out. Then in the 
principle of this law how can finite man 
know what the purposes of God are, and 
the great infinite principle that controls 
it ? Then how, and by what principle of 



The Infinite Par pose of Goi. 301 

law can man judge and comprehend the 
purposes of God in regard to man and this 
planet of ours ? There is but one conclu- 
sion that man can determine upon, and that 
is the operation of nature's laws upon 
things upon this earth or in the universe 
that is visible to man. Then in this con- 
dition man is blind, and cannot compre- 
hend the great principle of the pur- 
pose of God inclosed in the operation 
of nature's laws ; then all that finite 
man can comprehend in the operation of 
nature's laws and the great principle that 
underlies it, is, I see it, I see it operate; it 
is beautiful, it is magnificent. Oh, that I 
might understand the principle, the life 
that issues from the purpose of God as I see 
it operate in nature's law. 

Will the mystery of the infinite princi- 
ple in its operation issued from the purpose 
of 'God ever be revealed to man ? Never; 
never. Then why, Oh why keep it a mys- 
tery to man, and have the eternal world 
shrouded in darkness that man may never 
understand % We may, and can assume the 
reason why, and although coming from the 
finite mind, it may be correct, but never 



302 Dager^s Interpretation of the Bible. 

final. We then assume the reason why 
man is kept blind to this mystery incorpo- 
rated into the principle of God's eternal 
purpose — we then are forced to assume by 
the principle of law, that it is for the eter- 
nal good of man that we are kept blind 
from the mystery into the principle of the 
purpose of God. We also assume that the 
purpose of God is perfection, and cannot 
make a mistake, as it always operates for 
the benefit of man. Would we not degen- 
erate and lose our activity, and become 
dwarfs and idiotic, and the element and 
possibilities in man sink into a state of 
sleep and lethargy never to be awakened 
by the voice of an archangel, but to remain 
in silence for ever and ever if we were to 
understand the mystery of the purposes of 
God. If it were possible for man to ac- 
cumulate all the knowledge contained in 
the purpose of God, then man would in the 
immortal world progress to the highest 
plane of wisdom and become equal with 
God, which would be the very element to 
destroy and annihilate the activity in man, 
and his progression cease forever. God 
was too wise in his purpose when he ere- 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 303 

a tedman, to give him the possibility of 
ever stopping his progression. God, in the 
nature of his law, made man an active be- 
ing; he must and will act in all worlds, 
which will make progression eternal in its 
character. 

Rom. xi. 33 : " Oh ! The depth of riches 
both of the wisdom and knowledge of God ? 
How unsearchable are His judgments, and 
His ways past finding out ?" 

Isaiah xl. 18, 22, 25. 

Verse 18: ct To whom then w T ill ye 
liken God, or what likeness will ye compare 
unto Him ?" 

Verse 22 : tl It is He that sitteth upon 
the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants 
thereof are as grasshoppers ; that stretch- 
eth out the heavens as a curtain, and 
spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in. " 

Verse 25: t4 To whom then will ye 
liken me, or shall I be equal ? Saith the 
holy one. 11 

Chapter xlvi. 9, 10, 11. 

Verse 9 : t4 Remember the former things 
of old ; for I am God, and there is none 
else ; I am God, and there is none like me." 

Verse 10 : Declaring the end from the 



304 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

beginning, and from ancient times the 
things that are not yet done, saying : My 
counsel shall stand, and I will do all My 
pleasure.' 7 

Verse 11 : tk I have purposed it, I will 
also do it." 

We find in the above Scripture, God 
speaking to the world through the great 
prophet, Isaiah, giving His omnipotence 
and omniscient and omnipresent power and 
purpose of one God ; creating all things 
after the counsel of His own will ; who has 
shrowded the wall of the universe with the 
mystery that evolves from the purpose of 
God, making it impossible for the finite 
mind to comprehend, and in this condition, 
God has made it possible for man to compre- 
hend the spiritual blessings and benefits 
for him in the immortal world. 

Question. Don't Jesus Christ under- 
stand the purposes of God ? 

Answer. No, He does not, any more 
than any other man ; only as they are re- 
vealed to Him through nature's laws. 

Question. Jesus says that, " ' I and My 
Father are one." If so, then Jesus must 
understand the purposes of God. 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 305 

Answer. St. John x. 30 : "I and my 
father are one." I see you are in darkness 
as to the meaning of this question. This 
text does not mean that Jesus is one with 
the Father, in knowledge, wisdom and 
power; it means that Jesus is one with the 
Father, in helping to carry out the pur- 
poses of the father, as a helper, as a repre- 
sentative ; not knowing the mystery of the 
operations of the purpose of Grod, only as 
revealed to Him. Then Jesus is one with 
the Father through obedience. 

St. John xiv. 10 : wC I am in the Father, 
and the Father in Me ; the words that I 
speak unto you, I speak not of Myself, but 
the Father that dwelleth in Me, He doeth 
the works." 

Verse 24: tl The word which ye hear 
is not mine, but the Father's which sent 
Me." 

The above Scripture is positive proof 
that Jesus Christ had no knowledge of the 
mystery in the purposes of God. Jesus 
speaks to the world as an honest man 
should speak. For He was a man ; the man 
Jesus Christ, as the greal apostle Paul says 
in his word. 



306 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

Jesus says : 4 c The word which ye hear 
is not Mine, but the Father's which sent 
Me. v Here Jesus is introduced to the world 
as a messenger, to speak to man the word, 
the purpose of the Father. ' ' The Father 
that dwelleth in me," the God of the uni- 
verse, c ' doeth the works. " Is this not plain 
enough to understand, that Jesus nor any 
other conscious entity has any access to the 
mysteries in the purposes of God. God 
speaks to the world through the mouth of 
Jesus Christ and the prophets, in regard to 
His purposes to man. Nowhere in Scrip- 
ture, or in the science of nature, does God 
reveal the principle that operates in the 
purpose of God, which leaves it a mystery 
to man. If man can understand what the 
principle of life is, he then can understand 
the mystery of the principle enclosed in the 
purposes of God. 

Question. Was it the purpose of God to 
create Adam and Eve with all the elements 
and possibilities within their being? 

Answer. It was. 

Question. Was it the purpose of God 
that Adam and Eve should fall from their 
condition of innocence ? 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 307 

Answer. If Scripture is reliable, and 
the story of this creation be true, then it 
was the purpose of God to make Adam and 
Eve as they were made. Then in this con- 
dition, the purpose of God made it possible 
for them to fall, and God foreknew they 
would, in order to carry out other pur- 
poses that God was ready to execute. 
If there is any meaning and force to 
to Scripture, and the principle that govern 
law, then there is but one conclusion to 
settle upon, that is, it was the purpose of 
God that Adam and Eve should fall. God 
knowing they would fall, as He made it 
possible for them to fall, is evidence that 
it was the purpose of God that they should 
fall. 

Question. If this story be true, would 
it not destroy the responsibility of Adam 
and Eve, and make them machines in the 
hands of God to carry out His purpose in 
this case ? 

Answer. If we take this as it reads, it 
makes God a hypocrite and violator of His 
own law. If we interpret it as an allegory 
then it will produce another meaning, and 
justify God. The principle of Scripture 



308 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

that governs the law of God is so adjusted 
that God can carry out His purpose with- 
out the interference of the resposibility of 
man. If not, then the Bible is of no use 
to the race, only a curse. 

We will consider the lineage of Isaac and 
Jacob, concerning the seed by promise. 
The man Jesus Christ came through the 
seed of this lineage. As we proceed with 
this case, we will learn the purpose of 
God, manifested in all parts of this ques- 
tion. We learn in Genesis xxii. 18, that 
in the seed of Abraham all the nations of 
the earth are to be blessed. Genesis, Chap- 
ter xvi, we learn that Sarah, the wife of 
Abraham, was barren, and they wanted chil- 
dren, and in this condition, Sarah his wife, 
made a proposition to her husband, and if 
carried out they might have a child by an- 
other woman. 

This proposition that Sarah made to her 
husband is more liberal than wives would 
make to-day to a husband. But I presume 
that Sarah, as stated in Scripture, was not 
a jealous wife, and willing her husband 
should begat a child by another woman. 

Genesis, Chapter xvi, we learn that Sarah 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 309 

had a handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name 
was Hagar. And Sarah took Hagar and 
gave her to her husband to be his wife. 
And Abraham took Hagar, as his wife de- 
sired he should, and Hagar conceived by 
him and brought forth a son ; they named 
the son Ishmael. In this condition Sarah 
became jealous, and dealt hardly with 
Hagar, and she fled from Sarah into the 
wilderness, before the birth of _ the child. 
The angel of the Lord found her by a 
fountain of water ; and the angel of the 
Lord said unto her : 4 c Behold, thou art 
with a child, and shalt bear a son, and 
shalt call his name Ishmael, because the 
Lord hath heard thy affliction ; and he will 
be a wild man." 

Here we see the purpose of God demon- 
strated all along in the narrative of this 
question. It is plain that God had a pur- 
pose in this case, and eternal in its charac- 
ter. Abraham, at the age of one hundred, 
and his wife, Sarah, ninety years old, 
through the promise of God, bear Abra- 
ham a son, and called his name Isaac, as 
the Lord directed. 

We will now consider this purpose ac- 
cording to Scripture. 



310 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

Galatians iv. 22-24. 

Verse 22: "For it is written, that 
Abraham had two sons : the one by a bond- 
maid, the other by a f reewoman. " 

Verse 23 : " But he who was of a bond- 
woman was born of the flesh ; but he of the 
free- woman was by promise. " 

Verse 24 : "Which things are as alle- 
gory ; for these are the two covenants : 
the one from the Mount Sinai, which gen- 
dereth to bondage." Ishmael, the son of 
Hagar was the one born after the flesh ; a 
figure in this allegory to represent the 
covenant given to Moses from the Mount 
Sinai. ' 4 Which gendereth to bondage, 
and is in bondage with her children," that 
is, whoever worships Grod under the old 
Jewish covenant from Mount Sinai, is in 
spiritual bondage. Isaac, the son of Abra- 
ham and Sarah was by promise. A figure 
in this allegory to represent the present 
covenant through Jesus Christ, which gen- 
dereth to eternal life. 

Verse 28 : " Now we, brethren, as Isaac 
was, are the children of promise. 7 ' 

Verse 29 : "But as then he that was 
born after the flesh persecuted him that 



The Infinite Purpose of God, 311 

was born of the spirit ; even so it is now." 
How magnificent and wise purposes of God 
are in this case for our consideration. How 
true it is with a good man to-day to be 
persecuted by the man born after the flesh. 
Genesis, Chapter xvii. We have some 
history here in regard to Isaac and his wife 
Rebekah, and their two sons, Esau and 
Jacob. If this Scripture be true as to the 
history of Rebekah, the mother that gave 
birth to these two sons, Esau and Jacob ; 
flesh of her flesh, bone of her bone ; I say 
if this be true, she stands before the world, 
and will, down to the end of time, the most 
dangerous human fiend that ever trod this 
earth. The history of this family, as we 
find it here, is enough to cause the blood of 
man to grow cold. Why was it the purpose 
of God, that this wife and mother should 
act the part of a hypocrite, and deceive her 
husband and her darling boy, Esau, is more 
than I can comprehend. Did God purpose 
and control this mother to do what she did ? 
If so, God is guilty of a crime, and a viola- 
tion of His own law ; and not the God of the 
New Testament, who says that the hypo- 
crite and deceiver shall have their part in 



312 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

hell. No, it was not the purpose of God 
that this mother should deceive and lie to 
her husband and Esau. Here is an exam- 
ple from a mother, if followed up from 
generation to generation, would demoralize 
and damn the human race. 

Chap, xxvii. ct And it came to pass that 
when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim 
so that he could not see, he called Esau, 
his eldest son, and said unto him, My son: 
and he said unto him, Behold, here am I." 
The nature of these words from the mouth 
of Esau is enough to satisfy the mind of 
man that Esau was an honest, upright boy, 
and ready to respond to his father's call, 
and said, 4t Behold, here ami.' 7 A volume 
of meaning can be written from those 
words. 

Verse 2: 4 4 And he said, Behold, now I 
am old; I know not the day of my death." 

Verse 3 : 4 4 Now, therefore, take I pray 
thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy 
bow, and go out to the field, and take me 
some venison:" 

Verse 4 : 4 ' And make me savory meat, 
such as I love, and bring it to me, that I 
may eat, that my soul may bless thee be- 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 313 

fore I die.' 7 Can we .understand the mag- 
nitude of the principle of that love coming 
from the soul of that father to a son that 
he loved, and blind and could not see ? 
Then right in the light of this truth the 
mother steps forward with the audacity of 
a thief and a liar to deceive a blind com- 
panion whom she promised to protect and 
love; and also her son Esau, that she 
should protect by a virtuous and Christian 
example. 

Verse 6 : c c And Rebekah spake unto Ja- 
cob her son, saying, I heard thy father 
speak unto Esau thy brother, saying" — 
Here begins a conspiracy, a plot for an 
evil purpose, from the hand of a compan- 
ion and a mother, to deceive a blind hus- 
band and her son Esau, whom she gave 
birth to, and nursed him from the conso- 
lation of a mother's bosom. She now turns 
traitor to her darling innocent boy, exhib- 
iting a disposition as cruel and black in 
character as the worst human fiend that 
ever trod this earth. 

Verse 7 : 4 \ Bring me venison, and make 
me savory meat, that I may eat and bless 
thee before the Lord before my death." 

20 



314 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

Verse 8: t4 Now, therefore, my son, obey 
my voice according to that which I com- 
mand thee." 

Verse 9. ' c Gro now to the flock, and fetch 
me from thence two good kids of the goats, 
and I will make them savory meat for thy 
father, such as he loveth:" 

Verse 10, Li And thou shalt bring it to 
thy father, that he may eat, and that he 
may bless thee before his death." 

Verse 11 : 4 L And Jacob said to Rebekah, 
his mother, behold, Esau my brother is a 
hairy man, and I am a smooth man." 

Verse 12: tc My father perad venture 
will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a 
deceiver, and I shall bring a curse upon me, 
and not a blessing." 

Here stands Jacob before his mother, 
feeling convicted and condemnation rest- 
ing upon him, and now trembling and a 
rebuke to the mother, saying, t4 I fear my 
father will take me for a deceiver." 

Now the mother speaks to Jacob, her 
son, from the hardness of her heart, and 
says in Verse 13 : "• And his mother said 
unto him: upon me be thy curse, my son, 
only obey my voice and go fetch me them. " 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 315 

The determination of this mother to exe- 
cute this wicked plot to deceive a blind 
husband and a dear, honest son, is enough 
to cause the angels to drape Paradise in 
mourning. 

Verse 14 : li And he went and fetched, 
and brought them to his mother, and his 
mother made savory meat, such as his 
father loved." 

Verse 15 : t4 And Rebekah took goodly 
raiment of her eldest son Esau, which were 
with her in the house, and put them upon 
Jacob, her younger son. " 

Verse 16 : "And she put the skins of 
the kids of the goats upon his hands, and 
upon the smooth of his neck." 

Verse 17 : "And she gave the savory 
meat and the bread which she had pre- 
pared, into the hands of her son Jacob." 

Verse 18: "And he came into his 
father, and said : My father ; and he said, 
Here am I, who art thou, my son ? 71 

Now comes a lie from the son Jacob, 
created by a mother, and now to be put 
into execution, and as a memorial of her 
conduct, it is registered in the Bible, to 
be handed down from generation, to the 



316 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

end of time. Oh ! Mothers of the earth, 
do not follow the example of Rebekah, and 
become a traitor to a blind husband and a 
dear son of your own offspring. 

Verse 19: 4 ' And Jacob said unto his 
father : I am Esau, thy first born, I have 
done according as thou badest me ; arise, 
I pray thee; sit and eat of my venison, that 
thy soul my bless me." 

Verse 20 : ct And Isaac said unto his 
son, How is it that thou hast found it so 
quickly, my son ? And he said, Because the 
Lord thy God brought it to me. 1 ' 

Here Jacob confirms his lie, by appealing 
to the Lord God, to make it strong in the 
mind of a blind father, so as to make it a 
success in deceiving the father. 

Verse 21 : tc And Isaac said unto Jacob r 
come near, I pray thee, that I may feel 
thee, my son, whether thou be my very 
son Esau or not." 

Verse 22 : " And Jacob went near unto 
Isaac, his father, and he felt him and 
said : The voice is Jacob's voice, but the 
hands are the hands of Esau." 

Verse 23 : tl And he discerned him not, 
because his hands were hairy, as his brother 
Esau's hands; so he blessed him." 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 317 

Verse 24 : Wk And he said, art thou my 
very son Esau \ And he said, I am." 
in the nature of this verse Isaac feels 
suspicious and impressed there is some- 
thing wrong. In this condition, he inquires 
of Esau, "Art thou my very son Esau?" 
And in this condition, of an aged father, 
blind and could not see, ready to give up 
the spirit of God, and the body to return 
to dust from whence it came, Jacob said, 
4 4 1 am. " Can man understand the magni- 
tude of the effect of that lie that Jacob gave 
his father, willfully and maliciously from 
the mouth of Jacob, knowing he lied to his 
father to deceive and betray him. Whose 
door does this sin lay at ; the mother or 
the son i The mother must bear the bur- 
den of this event, as she created this plot 
and then forced her son to execute it, and 
then confirming before God and the son, 
i4 Upon me be thy curse, my son/ 1 

Verse 25 : t4 And he said, Bring near to 
me and I will eat of my son's venison, that 
my soul may bless thee ; and he brought it 
near to him, and he did eat ; and he brought 
him wine, and he drank/ 7 

Verse 26: "And his father Isaac said 



318 Bayer's Interpretation of the Bible. 

unto him, Come near now, and kiss rae, 
my son." 

Verse 27. t4 And he came near, and 
kissed him; and he smelled the smell of 
his raiment, and blessed him, and said, 
See, the smell of my son is as the smell of 
a field which the Lord hath blessed." 

Verse 28: ct Therefore God give thee of 
the dew of heaven and the fatness of the 
earth, and plenty of corn and wine." 

Verse 29. tc Let people serve thee, and 
nations bow down to thee; be lord over 
thy brethren, and let thy mother's sons 
bow down to thee; cursed be every one that 
curseth thee, and blessed be he that bless- 
eth thee." 

Verse 30. 4t And it came to pass as soon 
as Isaac had made an end of blessing Ja- 
cob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out 
from the presence of Isaac his father, that 
Esau his brother came in from his hunt- 
ing." 

Verse 31. ct And he also had made sa- 
vory meat and brought it unto his father, 
and said unto his father, Let my father 
arise, and eat of his son's venison, that thy 
soul may bless me. " 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 319 

Verse 32: 44 And Isaac his father said 
unto him, Who art thou ? and he said, I 
am thy son, thy firstborn, Esau. " 

Now comes a condition in this case. The 
sins of Rebeca and Jacob have found them 
out, and Esau, the honest son of Isaac and 
Rebekah, after spending the day in the 
day in the heat of the sun, returns home 
with venison for his father to eat, with his 
soul filled with love and joy, expecting a 
blessing from his father. And when Isaac 
found out that he had been deceived by 
his wife and son Jacob, he trembled, as we 
find it in verse 33: ct And Isaac trembled 
very exceedingly, and said, Who, where is 
he that hath taken venison, and brought it 
me, and I have eaten of all before thou 
earnest, and have blessed him ? yea, and he 
shall be blessed. 7 ' 

Verse 44. t4 And when Esau heard the 
words of his father, he cried with a great 
and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his 
father, Bless me, even me also, Oh my 
father." 

The condition of Esau in this hour of his 
disappointment, with the grief that his 
soul gave vent to, was enough to cause the 



320 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

angels of heaven to shed tears and come to 
his rescue and comfort him while weeping 
and crying in the agony of his soul by and 
through a wicked plot and betrayal of his 
mother that gave him birth. 

Verse 35: t4 And he saith, Thy brother 
came with subtlety, and hath taken away 
thy blessing. " 

Verse 38: '• And Esau said unto his fa- 
ther, Hast thou but one blessing, my fa- 
ther ? bless me, even me also, Oh my fa- 
ther; and Esau lifted up his voice and 
wept." Isaac his father then blessed him. 

According to the history of this case Ja- 
cob secured his blessing through deceit 
and hypocrisy. If this be true, how can 
it stand and prosper, when Scripture tells 
us that sin cannot prosper, for it is not of 
God, and must fall to the ground. 



CHAPTER XVII. 



THE INFINITE PURPOSE OF GOD. 



f^ENESIS xxv. Iii this chapter we find 
VQ the history of the birth of Esau and 
Jacob as twins. Esau was born first, being 
the elder, and Jacob his brother the 
younger. In verse 23 it says, ct The elder 
shall serve the younger. " While Rebekah 
was in this condition she went and inquired 
of the Lord, and the Lord said unto her, 
4 ■ Two nations are in thy womb, and two 
manner of people shall be separated from 
thy bowels." 

Verse 25: c, And Esau, the first, came 
out red, all over, like an hairy garment; 
and they called his name Esau. v 

Verse 26: c; And after that came his 
brother out, and his name was called Ja- 
cob; and Isaac was sixty years old when 
she bare them. Jacob was a smooth man." 

In the history of this story we find two 
nations, two manner of people, conceived 
in the womb of Rebekah at the same time, 



322 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

and born as twins at the same time. If 
this event be true, then God interposed 
and caused this conception in collision with 
the natural law that gives conception 
through the seed of man. 

Question. Was it the purpose of God 
that Esau and Jacob should come into this 
world as they did ? 

Answer. It was the purpose of God this 
should be. Chap. xxi. 23 is proof that it 
was the purpose of God ; and it was the 
purpose of God that Esau, the elder, should 
serve the younger. Chap, xxvii. 40: ct And 
by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt 
serve thy brother ; and it shall come 
to pass when thou shalt have the domin- 
ion, that thou shalt break his yoke from 
off thy neck.' 7 

Question. Was Jacob a member of the 
lineage from Abraham down to the birth 
of Jesus Christ ? 

Answer. Jacob belonged to that lineage, 
being forty-two generations from Abraham 
to Jesus Christ. The promised seed came 
down through Jacob and on to Christ. 
Ishmael and Esau did not belong to this 
lineage. 



The Infinite Purpose of God 323 

Question. Was it the purpose of God 
that the firstborn in each generation should 
be a member of this lineage I 

Answer. It was not, for Judah, the 
fourth son of Jacob, by his wife Leah, is 
the next in this lineage to his father 
Jacob. 

Question. Was it the purpose of God 
that Rebekah and her son Jacob should 
deceive and betray Isaac and her son Esau 
to create Jacob a member of this lineage ? 

Answer. It was not, as this transaction 
had nothing to do with it. 

Question. Then the strife between the 
parties was on account of the blessing that 
Isaac was to give Esau I 

Answer. This was the bone of conten- 
tion. Isaac loved Esau, and wanted to 
bless him before his death ; and Rebekah 
loved Jacob, and wanted him to have that 
blessing that Esau was to have. 

Question. Esau sold his birthright; did 
that have anything to do with that bless- 
ing that Esau was to have ? 

Answer. It is a question whether it had 
or not. Esau sold to Jacob for a mess of 
pottage all the rights and privileges that 



324 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

he was entitled to in his birthright. What 
constituted the rights of his in this birth- 
right, is more than I know; but there is 
one thing we do know, that Jacob secured 
his birthright through stratagem, and also 
the blessing. 

Genesis xxvii. 36 : 4t And he said: Is 
not he rightly named Jacob ? For he hath 
supplanted me these two times ; he took 
away my birthright, and behold, now he 
hath taken away my blessing, and he said: 
Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me ?" 

Question. Did God control Rebekah and 
Jacob to commit this crime against their 
free will power ? 

Answer. God did not interfere, neither 
was it His purpose that Rebekah and her 
son Jacob should commit this crime. If 
this be true, it would destroy every attri- 
bute in the Godhead, and bring God on a 
level with man. According to Scripture, 
God cannot tempt a man, neither can he 
tamper with the will power of man, to turn 
him one way or another ; for the will power 
of man is deity to his nature. If it was the 
purpose of (^lod to turn man from his own 
purpose, it would destroy the responsibility 
of man, and leave him without a choice. 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 325 

The facts, as represented in this case, are 
as follows : Isaac wanted to give this first 
blessing to Esau. Rebekah, his wife, wanted 
to give it to Jacob. Isaac loved Esau. Re- 
bekah loved Jacob. And when Rebekah 
saw that Isaac was going to give this bless- 
ing to Esau, then the fight commenced. Re- 
bekah was determined to conquer, regard- 
less as to what she might resort to, and she 
did conquer, by making herself a criminal 
and liar, and forced Jacob to obey her 
voice, to commit this crime against a father 
that was blind, and to make his father be- 
lieve it, he appeals to the Lord God to con- 
firm the act. 

Question. Do you believe this story as 
it reads ? 

Answer. You now touch a tender spot. 
I have no right to change the WT>rds of 
this story. 

Question. I want your opinion in re- 
gard to the history of this event, that- took 
place in the family of Isaac, as stated in 
the Bible. 

Answer. I believe God made man to 
progress and criticise, that is, to examine 
and judge everything that he comes in con- 



326 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

tact with, to develope him to understand 
the truth in all things that he might crit- 
icise. It is a prerogative of man, and a 
privilege or right that God endowed man 
with, from the foundation of the world, 
And under this condition and considera- 
tion, I, as a man, take the privilege granted 
to me by God, to criticise this story as we 
find it in the Bible. As we read this story 
in the history of the family of Isaac, and the 
precise words and formation, and the dress- 
ing and character of the language, it can- 
not in the judgment of common sense and 
reason stand criticism in this age of the 
nineteenth century. Who believes for a 
moment that Rebekah was such a human 
fiend as described in the Bible, to create a 
plot to deceive and betray a blind husband, 
whom she promised to protect, and who con- 
spired with one son to betray, not only the 
father, but Esau her son, whom she gave 
birth to as the elder. No crime that man 
can commit is as black and damnable as 
this that Rebekah is charged with. We have 
in this age, as well as the past, some pre- 
tended pious people, who tell us that we 
must not criticise the Bible, for it is all 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 327 

the word of God. In reply I will say, from 
the integrity of my own study of the Bible, 
if true, that all that is in the Bible be the 
word of God, I pity the human race. They 
had better never been born, and the world 
remained a nonentity. I believe in that age, 
there was Isaac, Kebekah his wife, and the 
two twin boys, Esau and Jacob. I do not 
believe that two nations were born to them 
at the same time, from the seed of Isaac. 
It is in opposition to the immutable law of 
God, which he issued and commanded 
Adam and Eve to multiply and propagate 
as the law required. If it be true, then 
God interposed and generated the two na- 
tions through His infinite power, and not 
by the seed of Isaac, by a law unknown to 
man. If this was the case, I believe it pos- 
sible for God to cause this conception out- 
side the natural law of production by His 
own power, as He did in the case of Mary, 
the mother of Jesus Christ. 

What authority do we find in the Bible 
to prove that this story is all true. We 
will examine the Bible and history for 
authority. In the first place, we learn that 
the first five books of the Old Testament 



328 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

is ascribed to Moses as the author or com- 
piler, by all tradition, Jewish and heathen; 
and this testimony is sustained by the rec- 
ord itself, which distinctly asserts that the 
Hebrew law-giver wrote portions of a his- 
tory. Thus after the defeat of Amalek we 
read. Ex. xvii. 14. 4t The Lord said unto 
Moses, write this for a memorial in a book. " 
The first five books are called Pentateuch. 
We learn here that Moses did write. Moses 
was a scholar, and brought up as the son 
of Pharaoh's daughter, and was c ' learned 
in all the wisdom " of the Egyptian cus- 
toms. This conclusion, however, does not 
oblige us to believe that Moses wrote every 
word of the Pentateuch, but that he was 
the original compiler from such documents 
as were then accessible. Thus we may be- 
lieve that the book of Genesis was drawn 
up from primeval documents and family 
records of a contemporaneous origin, pre- 
served by the patriarchs, similar to the 
books on clay and papyrus, which the 
monuments of Egypt have revealed. And 
in this condition, if a family record was 
kept at that time, in the family of Isaac, 
and as this event took place with Rebekah 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 329 

and the two sons, and there and then re- 
corded on the record, then it is possible 
that this story may be true, if not tampered 
with since that time. 

One more point to consider, then I will 
close this event for the consideration of 
those that consider it. 

Genesis xxv. 23. The purpose of God in 
this verse is, that the elder, that is Esau, 
shall serve the younger, that is Jacob. This 
is positive, and must be done. In this 
condition, if Isaac had given his first 
blessing to Esau instead of Jacob, then 
Jacob the younger would have been a 
servant to Esau. If that had been the 
case, then the purpose of God would have 
been a failure. In this condition it was 
absolutely necessary for Rebekah to secure 
this blessing for Jacob, so as to have the 
elder serve the younger. This she did 
through deception and lying. 

We now have a momentous question to 
consider. It was the purpose of God that 
Jacob should have this first blessing, to 
make him ruler over Esau. Did God bring 
his purpose about by controlling the mind 
of Rebekah contrary to her will power ? If 

21 



330 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

so, she then was a mere machine in the 
hand of God to bring about his purposes, 
which would destroy the integrity and vir- 
tue of her womanhood, and annihilate the 
will power that God gave her to protect her- 
self and use at her own discretion, and crown 
her responsibility with dignity and honor. 
If not, then God brought his purposes about 
through the acts and free will power of 
Rebekah, with no one to molest or influ- 
ence her to do what she did. There is but 
one conclusion to arrive at; that is, Rebe- 
kah did just as she saw fit, and is held re- 
sponsible for the act ; if not, then there is 
no virtue in the commandments of God, 
where it says, ' " Love your neighbor as 
yourself." But if this Scripture be true, 
where it says in Romans ix. 17, 18, t; For 
the Scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for 
this same purpose have I raised thee up, 
that I might shew my power in thee, and 
that my name might be declared through, 
out all the earth, therefore hath he mercy 
on whom he will have mercy, and whom 
he will he hardeneth." If this Scripture 
be true, then it is possible that God hard- 
ened the heart of Rebekah so that she 



The Infinite Purpose of God, 331 

could not help herself any more than Pha- 
raoh could help himself. If this Scripture 
is reliable, then the commandments are a 
mockery to man; for if God sees fit to 
harden your heart, you can't obey if you 
want to do so. 

This Scripture in regard to Pharaoh is 
uncanonical, and does not belong to the 
canon, and should be placed in the Apoc- 
rypha. The law of the new covenant gives 
man his freedom to act, and is responsible 
to God for the same. God is love, and his 
mercy extends to all. God never hardens 
any man's heart, but man hardens his own 
by not obeying the law of God; and this 
was the case with Pharaoh and Rebekah; 
they hardened their own hearts through 
disobedience. 

Question. Back in eternity, when God 
purposed in himself to create this earth, 
were there three entities ? — I mean three 
conscious, intelligent entities. If so, did 
they consolidate together in all the pur- 
poses of God ? 

Answer. You have asked two questions; 
I will answer the first, that will do away 
with the other. The Scriptures teach but 



332 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

one entity in the Godhead, called Deity, 
God, Supreme Being, the Creator. 

Isaiah xlv. 18 : L c God himself that formed 
the earth and made it; he hath established 
it to be inhabited; I am the Lord, and there 
is none else." 

Verse 21: ct And there is no God else be- 
side me; a just God and a Saviour; there 
is none beside me.' 7 There is no plural 
number in this God; it is a unit, one God, 
the supreme entity. Chap. xliv. 6 : "I 
am the first, and I am the last; and beside 
me there is no God. 7 ' 

Question. Do you say that the Trinity 
is not true ? 

Answer. The Trinity is not true; to 
make it true there must be three intelli- 
gent entities to constitute the Godhead; 
there is no Scripture to sustain the Trin- 
ity. 

Question. Do I understand you to say 
that the vicarious atonement is not true ? 

Answer. The doctrine of the vicarious 
atonement is not true; there is no Scrip- 
ture to sustain it, which will be shown as 
we proceed with this question. 

Rom. i. 1-3: t4 Paul, a servant of Jesus 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 333 

Christ, called to be an apostle, separated 
unto the gospel of God (which he had 
promised afore by his prophets in the Holy 
Scriptures) concerning his Son Jesus Christ 
our Lord, which was made of the seed of 
David according to the flesh." 

Rom. ix. 5 : ' ; Of whom as concerning the 
flesh, Christ came, who is over all, God 
blessed forever. " Christ existed previously, 
independent of the flesh ; he came in the 
flesh. Christ therefore is God or his Spirit 
manifested in the flesh. I hope the reader 
will understand the meaning of this Scrip- 
ture. The word Christ is the Spirit of God, 
which is God manifested in the flesh to re- 
concile the world to himself, as Paul says 
in his writings. As far as we have gone 
do you find any more than one Divine en- 
tity ? The Messiah of the Jews therefore 
is the Spirit of God coming in humanity; 
the Spirit of good principles incarnate. In 
the previous dispensation Christ came as 
the Spirit, now r he comes as a man. 

Actsii. 22. Addressing the Jews, Peter 
exclaims, ;t Ye men of Israel, hear these 
words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved 
of God among you by miracles and won- 



334 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

ders and signs, which God did by him in 
the midst of yon, as ye yonrselves also 
know." And after allnding to his cruci- 
fixion and resurrection, he continues: t4 For 
David speaketh concerning him : I foresaw 
the Lord always before my face, for he is 
on my right hand that I should not be 
moved." And in the 30th verse the apos- 
tle adds: t4 Therefore, being a prophet, 
and knowing that God had sworn with an 
oath to him that of the fruit of his loins 
according to the flesh, he would raise up 
Christ to sit on his throne." Christ ex- 
isted previously as the spirit; now he is 
raised up according to the flesh. Christ is 
a man descended from David in the flesh, 
whom David calls the Lord. I trust this 
will be plain enough for the reader to un- 
derstand the different conditions that 
Christ occupied as the Spirit of God, and 
was God in both of the dispensations. He 
is the Spirit of the Lord manifested in a 
man descended from David. Jesus repre 
sents and actually identifies himself with 
the Holy Spirit. His flesh and blood are 
of no account ; he incarnates the Holy 
Spirit, and represents that Spirit, God. By 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 335 

keeping in line with the narrative of this 
question, you will find a line drawn be- 
tween the Christ, the Spirit, the God, and 
Jesus as a man with body and soul, Jesus, 
the finite entity, the Christ, the Spirit, the 
God, all one, and a Divine entity. Is there 
anything here to sustain the Trinity and 
the vicarious atonement ? If you can find 
in Scripture where the Divine Spirit, the 
Christ, the God, which is God, the one en- 
tity, suffers on the cross instead of Jesus as 
a man, then the vicarious atonement can 
be established; the Divine did not suffer. 
There is no law that can cause the infinite 
God or any of his attributes to suffer. God 
is beyond suffering, regardless of any con- 
dition that may take place in man. The 
law did not call for a Divine sacrifice; it 
called for a spotless body of flesh and 
blood, finite in nature. When Jesus as a 
man was on the cross he cried out from his 
finite nature, and said, 4 4 My God, my God, 
why hast thou forsaken me ?" 

This is proof that in that hour, that God, 
the spirit, the Christ, withdrew from Jesus 
as a man and a human soul, that as he took 
on our nature, he might suffer and taste 



336 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

death for every man. He suffered as a fi- 
nite spirit, and gave his body and shed his 
blood to redeem the race from a spiritual 
death that Adam brought on an innocent 
race; not as a substitute, but as a sacrifice 
to satisfy the law. There is but one con- 
dition in the new covenant, through the 
blood that sealed it, to redeem the race to 
God in the mortal existence and immortal 
existence, that is reformation and punish- 
ment. This is the element and principle 
involved in this sacrifice to redeem the race 
to God. This is the door, the way, the 
life, and no other. 4 c It is the spirit that 
quickeneth, the flesh profiteth nothing; the 
words that I speak unto you they are 
spirit and they are life. 7 ' This explana- 
tion shows that the words flesh and blood 
are used representively of the spirit. We 
shall now be able to understand the mys- 
terious expression used in John viii. 58 : 
Ci Before Abraham was I am," The prin- 
ciple which Jesus advocated, the truths 
which he professed, the doctrines which he 
taught, the spirit which he represented 
were all from God, and before Abraham. 
But some of our religious institutions will 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 337 

have it that Jesus, as a spirit entity, separ- 
ate from the entity of God, did exist as an 
intelligent son of God prior to the time of 
Abraham, and was one of the three that 
made up the Trinity. Oh ! Consistency, 
thou art a jewel. How much longer must 
man be deceived and kept blind through 
the pulpits of this age, and advocate the 
doctrine of the Trinity and vicarious atone- 
ment as a truth ? 

Oh ! Nations of the earth, arise from your 
condition of lethargy and sleep, and think 
and read for yourselves, and not be led by 
hirelings and the false dogmas and the 
apostacy of this world ; but place the stand- 
ard of God upon a higher plane of purity, 
love, mercy, justice and equity, who can- 
not look upon sin in the least degree of any 
allowance, but must be punished for the 
good of the sinner. There is no provision 
in the new covenant that man can be ex- 
empt from punishment due sin. There is 
but one provision in the new covenant for 
salvation, that is, reformation and punish- 
ment. 

Question. Is the purpose of God an at- 
tribute, and is it eternal ? 



338 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

Answer. It is an attribute and is eternal. 

Eph. i. 2 : u Predestinated according 
to the purpose of Him who worketh all 
things after the counsel of His own will. " 
The purpose here is parallel with the coun- 
sel of God's own will, which makes it eter- 
nal. Attribute here is a natural quality, 
character, belonging to the divine nature 
of God. 

Eph. iii. 11. L L According to the eternal 
purpose, which He purposed in Jesus Christ 
our Lord." This is evidence the purpose 
of God is eternal, and not generated in 
God at the time he executes His purpose. 

Question. What is an attribute ? 

Answer. Natural quality, character. 

Question. Is justice an attribute? 

Answer. It is. Upright, exact, true, 
righteous, the justice of God, agreeable- 
ness to that which is just. 

Question. Is mercy an attribute ? 

Answer. It is an attribute of God. It- 
is compassion, clemency, pardon, kindness, 
gentleness. 

Question. Is the love of God an attri- 
bute? 

Answer. The love of God is an attri- 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 339 

bute. It is affection, kindness, fondness. 

Question. Is omnipotence an attribute ? 

Answer. The omnipotence of God is an 
attribute, which is infinite pow r er. 

Question. Is omniscience an attribute ? 

Answer. It is an attribute. Infinite 
wisdom and knowledge. 

Question. Is omnipresence an attribute ? 

Answer. It is. Being a natural quality 
of God. 

Question. Is the perfection of God an 
attribute ? 

Answer. The perfection of God is an 
attribute. Being a natural quality, char- 
acter, a state of being perfect. 

Question. Is immortality an attribute 
of God ? 

Answer. The immortality of God is an 
attribute. It is eternal existence, being a 
natural quality in the divine nature, and 
the only intelligent entity in this universe 
that has got immortality. 

Question. Is divine nature and the God- 
head an attribute ? 

Answer. It is not an attribute. 

Question. What constitutes the God- 
head ? 



340 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

Answer. Deity, the divine nature, sup- 
reme being, the Creator, God, that is the 
Godhead. 

Question. Do I understand you to say 
that love, mercy, justice, purpose, per- 
fection, immortality, omnipotence, omnis- 
cience, omnipresence are all attributes of 
God? 

Answer. All the attributes mentioned 
above are attributes of God. 

Question. Do you consider all these at- 
tributes complete and perfect, and infinite 
in quality and nature ? 

Answer. I do. They had to be perfect 
to constitute the Godhead. 

Question. Did it take all of these attri- 
butes to make up the Godhead ? 

Answer. It took all of these attributes, 
which are natural qualities in divine nature 
which is God, making the Godhead. 

Question. Will the Scriptures sustain 
you in your consideration as to this ques- 
tion ? 

Answer. It will. The Scriptures teach 
us that God is love ; that God is perfection ; 
that God is immortality ; that God is just ; 
that God is mercy ; that God is omnipo- 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 341 

tent ; that God is omniscient ; that God is 
omnipresent ; that God is purpose. And 
every one of these attributes are perfect, 
and are natural qualities in God, the divine 
nature and Godhead. The love of God 
alone does not constitute the divine nature, 
the Godhead. This perfection alone does 
not constitute the divine nature, the God- 
head. It takes everyone of these attributes 
to constitute God, the Divine nature, the 
Godhead. Everyone of these attributes are 
complete, perfect, and infinite in nature. 
So one has no pre-eminence above an- 
other. All are on a level, and are part and 
parcel of the Divine nature. 

Question. Do you say to me that this 
is true in regard to God and final, as you 
consider it through Scripture ? 

Answer. I do not consider it final; wheth- 
er this is true in regard to God and the 
attributes that we have just considered, is 
more than I can give as a positive answer. 
All the proof I have is the Bible, and what 
I can learn through the laws of nature. 

Question. Have you given me all of the 
attributes of God as found in Scripture ? 

Answer. No, I have not, but enough was 



342 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

given to justify the principle of the Divine 
nature. I will give more as I find them 
in Scripture; eternal, immutable, invisible, 
unsearchable, incomprehensible, holiness, 
faithfulness, goodness and love. 

Question. You say God is invisible, un- 
searchable, incomprehensible; if so, we 
have two sides to this question. Which 
shall we believe ? Does it look as if the 
Scripture as to this questionwas on grounds 
of speculation ? 

Answer. No, it does not look as if this 
question was on grounds of speculation, 
because God is invisible and unsearchable 
and incomprehensible does not show that 
there is a collision in the attributes of 
Divine nature. The reason that man can- 
not search out God and comprehend him, 
is becanse he is invisible, not but what all 
of these attributes are true. I believe it 
impossible for man to comprehend the 
quality of the love and affections and 
mercy and justice and perfection and pur- 
poses of God only as they are made known 
to us. The reason for this is, God is infinite 
and all of his attributes, while man is finite 
and sees as a finite mind, which makes it 



The Infinite Purpose of God. 343 

impossible for man to comprehend the 
nature of God. 

Question. Was it the purpose of God 
that Jesus should come, and was this his 
purpose before the foundation of this 
earth ? 

Answer. It was according to Scripture. 

1 Peter 1:20. The purpose of God 
was foreordained before the foundation 
of the world that Jesus should come in 
these last times. 

Question. Was the name of Christ ap- 
plied to the Holy Spirit? 

Answer. 2 Cor. v. 16: "Henceforth 
know we no man after the flesh; yea, 
though we have known Christ after the 
flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no 
more." The name of Christ, after his as- 
cension, no longer represents a man teach- 
ing his fellows, but principles, a power — 
the Spirit of God at work in the world. 
The apostle further tells us, 2 Cor. iii. 17, 
the Lord is that Spirit, so that the Lord 
and the Spirit are the same. They are 
synonymous terms. The words Lord, 
Christ, Spirit of God, and God, mean the 
same thing, and are used indiscriminately 



344 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

by Paul and John. Rom. viii. 9, 10, Paul 
uses the terms Spirit of God, Spirit of 
Christ, and Christ, as interchangeable, 
thus: ct But ye are not in the flesh, but in 
the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God 
dwell in you. Now if any man have not 
the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And 
if Christ be in you, the body is dead be- 
cause of sin, but the Spirit is life because 
of righteousness. " 



CHAPTER XVIII. 



JUDAS ISCARIOT. 

THE betrayal of Jesus Christ by Judas 
Iscariot is one of the great moment- 
ous questions recorded in the Bible for man 
to consider. Was it the purpose of God 
that Judas Iscariot should betray Jesus 
Christ, as recorded in Scripture, and did 
God create him for that purpose, is a ques- 
tion that should be considered with care, 
and decided with an unbiased mind. 

Before we argue this question according 
to Scripture, and as an introduction to this 
subject, we will say by the authority of 
Scripture, that it was just as necessary to 
have a Judas in this case as a Jesus Christ, 
for without a betrayer the Scripture would 
not have been fulfilled, and no sacrifice 
made for the race; and, according to the 
teachings of some of our religious institu- 
tions of the present age, the entire race 
would have been lost, and assigned to an 
endless hell of misery, to be the compan- 

21 



346 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

ions of devils that Grod created to torment 
the race. Oh Grod, is this thy love ? I 
shall prove by the Scripture that it was the 
purpose of God that Judas should betray 
Jesus Christ, and that Grod and Jesus 
Christ knew it when Jesus selected him as 
one of the disciples of the twelve apos- 
tles. 

Matt. x. In this chapter Jesus selects 
his twelve apostles, Judas Iscariot being 
one of the twelve. 

St. John vi. 70, 71: " Jesus answered 
them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and 
one of you is a devil. He spake of Judas 
Iscariot, the son of Simon; for he it was 
that should betray him, being one of the 
twelve." 

Matt. x. He says to his twelve, as he 
sends them out two by two, as stated in 
Mark vi. 7, and gave them power over un- 
clean spirits, and to preach the gospel. 

Matt. x. ' c Heal the sick, cleanse the 
lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils." 
Verse 20: t4 For it is not ye that speak, but 
the Spirit of your Father which speaketh 
in you." 

Acts i. 16-20: Peter says, t4 Men and 



Judas Iscariot. 347 

brethren, this Scripture must needs have 
been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by 
the mouth of David spake before concern- 
ing Judas, which was guide to them that 
took Jesus." Verse 20: tc For it is written 
in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation 
be desolate, and let no man dwell therein, 
and his diocese let another take." 

St. John xiii. 18: ct I speak not of you 
all; I know whom I have chosen; but that 
the Scripture may be fulfilled, he that 
eateth bread with me hath lifted up his 
heel against me. " Verse 11 : 4 4 For he knew 
who should betray him; therefore said he, 
Ye are not all clean." 

We will now sum up this subject as we 
find it in the above Scripture. God the 
Holy Ghost speaks through the mouth of 
David, a thousand years before Christ, con- 
cerning Judas, which was a guide to them 
that took Jesus. This is proof that it was 
the purpose of God that when the time 
came to fulfill the Scripture in regard to 
Christ, he would bring into existence this 
man Judas to betray Jesus Christ, for some 
man must betray him to fulfill the Scrip- 
ture, and Judas Iscariot was the man that 



348 Dager^s Interpretation of the Bible. 

God selected to be the betrayer, or the pro- 
phecy in Scripture in regard to this case 
must fall to the ground, for the pro- 
phecy was a thousand years before his 
birth. 

Judas Iscariot was chosen one of the 
twelve apostles. 4i Jesus answered them, 
Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of 
you is a devil. He spake of Judas Iscariot, 
the son of Simon, for he it was that should 
. betray him, being one of the twelve. " How 
positive this statement, c 'For he it was that 
should betray him. " It does not say that 
Judas might betray him, but it speaks with 
emphasis that Judas should betray him; 
there is no doubt left in this argument; it 
is final ; God and Jesus knew when he se- 
lected him for an apostle that he would 
and must betray him to fulfill the prophecy 
in Scripture in regard to him. I care not 
what his previous character might have 
been; he might have been an angel. Ac- 
cording to the nature of Scripture in re- 
gard to Judas Iscariot, he must have been 
a good man when chosen as an apostle, for 
in the above Scripture, when Jesus sent 
him out to preach, he gave him power to 



Judas Iscariot 349 

heal the sick, to cast out devils, to raise 
the dead. Now it is not consistent in the 
nature of these things that Judas could do 
all that Jesus gave him power to do in case 
he was a devil when chosen as an apostle, 
for he must have been a good man, at least 
in part of the ministry of Jesus Christ be- 
fore he fell and became a devil, and then 
in a condition to betray Jesus, as we find it 
in Scripture. How much good Judas did 
while holding the office of an apostle, is 
not known. We find in Mark vi. 12, 13, 
4 J And they went out and preached that 
men should repent; and they cast out many 
devils, and anointed with oil many that 
were sick, and healed them." Now Judas 
must have been among them. It says, 
they went out and did this healing. This 
is proof that Judas Iscariot was all right 
then, and did with the other apostles cast 
out devils and healed the sick. Was it 
the purpose of God when he created Judas 
Iscariot, to betray Jesus Christ ? It was, 
if Scripture is reliable, and born for that 
purpose, if Scripture be true. Fatalism 
was a necessity, overruling his life. 

Question. What is your opinion in re- 
gard to this subject ? 



350 Dagei : s Interpretation of the Bible. 

Answer. According to the fundamental 
principles that underlie, and are the basis 
for Scripture to rest upon, I believe this 
Scripture to be erroneous and without au- 
thority. If true, then Judas Iscariot was 
without any will power of his own, and the 
principle involved in the commandments, 
and the right of power it had over him, and 
the powder of choice invested in him to do 
or not to do, became a mockery in the sight 
of God and the world. 

Question. Does the Scripture teach that 
Judas Iscariot was to be the betrayer of 
Jesus Christ for thirty pieces of silver be- 
fore he was born ? 

Answer. It does. We find in the book 
of Zachariah xi. 12, 13, four hundred and 
eighty-seven years before Christ, the 
prophet Zachariah prophesied in regard to 
the betrayal of Christ, for thirty pieces of 
silver. 

Verse 12 : tc And I said unto them, If 
ye think good, give me my price, and if 
not, forbear ; so they weighed for my price 
thirty pieces of silver. 77 

This agrees with the Scripture found in 
Matt, xxvii. 15 : " Then one of the twelve 



Judas Iscariot 351 

called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief 
priests/' verse 15: iC And said unto them, 
What will ye give me, and I will deliver 
him unto you ? And they covenanted with 
him for thirty pieces of silver." 

The above proves that it was the pur- 
pose of Grod that Jesus Iscariot was to be- 
tray Christ, inevitable, and cannot be 
avoided. 

Question. Was Judas an unbeliever and 
a devil when he was chosen an apostle ? 

Answer. He was. If Scripture is re- 
liable in regard to it. 

St. John vi. 70, 71 : 4t Jesus answered 
them," that is the disciples, ct Have not I 
chosen you twelve, and one of you is a 
devil? He spake of Judas Iscariot, the son 
of Simon, for he it was that should betray 
him, being one of the twelve." Verse 64 : 
1 ' But there are some of you that believe 
not," that is, some of His disciples. For 
Jesus knew from the beginning who they 
were that believed not, and who should be- 
tray Him. 

If there is any force and character to the 
English language, it is positive by the 
above Scripture, that Judas Iscariot was 



352 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

born for this purpose, foreordained and 
predestinated by God, that Judas should 
betray Christ, regardless of the will power 
of Judas. If this Scripture be true, he 
was a tool ; a machine in the hands of God, 
to betray Jesus Christ, for he must be be- 
trayed by some one, and Judas was selected 
by God to betray Him. 

If the above Scripture be true, then God 
and Jesus Christ knew that when they 
called Judas Iscariot to be a disciple, that 
he was an unbeliever and a devil, and in 
that condition, took part of the ministry as 
one of the twelve. 

St. John vi. 64. It says : t4 But there are 
some of you that believe not. 77 For Jesus 
knew from the beginning who they were 
that believed not, and who should betray 
Him. This is proof that Jesus knew in the 
beginning, when he made Judas a disciple, 
that he was a devil and an unbeliever. 

If the above Scripture be true, then God 
is responsible for the conduct of Judas Is- 
cariot in betraying Jesus Christ, and in this 
condition Judas should not be punished 
for what he done, if other Scriptures be 
true. But in view of all this, it says in 



Judas Iscariot. 353 

Matt, xxvi. 24 : Li The Son of man goetli as 
it is written of him, but woe unto the man 
by whom the Son of man is betrayed, it had 
been good for that man if he had not been 
born.'' Now look at the inconsistency of 
this Scripture. It was prophesied back in 
the Jewish world that Judas should betray 
Jesus Christ for thirty pieces of silver, and 
in John Chap. vi. verse 64, it says that 
Jesus knew from the beginning when He 
chose him for a disciple, that he was an un- 
believer. And in verse 70, Jesus called Judas 
a devil, and in verse 71, it says that Jesus 
said, ct For he that is Judas, it was that 
should betray Him. 77 And in view of all 
this, Jesus Christ chose him to be one of the 
twelve disci pies, knowing when He made 
the choice, that Judas Iscariot was a devil 
and an unbeliever. This is plain Scripture. 
What shall we do with it ? It is at war 
with the fundamental principles that gov- 
ern the contents of the new covenant. But 
someone says, c L Do not criticise the word 
of God, but take it as it reads and be con- 
tented. 77 Yes, the world has taken it as it 
reads for the past centuries gone by, and 
by it the race in this age is in ignorance, 



354 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

and crime on the increase, for not criticis- 
ing the Bible, to know whether it is all the 
word of God or not. 

Matt. ix. 4 : " And Jesus knowing their 
thoughts said: Wherefore think ye evil in 
your hearts V 

This Scripture is evidence that Jesus 
Christ knew the thoughts of all men, and 
when he chose Judas Iscariot to be one of 
His disciples, He knew the thoughts of 
Judas, and that he was a devil, and would 
betray Him. If this Scripture is reliable, 
then there is no excuse for Jesus Christ in 
making him a disciple, for Jesus and God 
knew all about him at that time, and God 
selected him to betray His son Jesus Christ, 
to redeem a lost race from Adam's trans- 
gression. The event of Judas betraying 
the Son of man was the greatest event that 
ever took place upon this earth, and as 
great as the death of the Son; no death of 
the Son without a betrayer. Judas Iscariot 
was the most conspicuous of the two in this 
event, and upon the act of Judas Iscariot 
hung the eternal destiny of the race, and 
a redemption secured, and in this con- 
dition, Judas Iscariot, the betrayer, was 



Judas Iscariot. 355 

the key that unlocked the door between the 
Jew and Gentile, and brought forth the 
treasure from the prison house, the death 
of the Son of man; the two co-operated to- 
gether, to bring about a condition to de- 
stroy spiritual death in harmony with the 
purpose of God. Judas Iscariot, through 
ignorance, played his part in this great 
event to redeem the race ; while Jesus 
Christ, through knowledge of this event, 
became a willing subject as a sacrifice to 
redeem the race from death that Adam 
brought on an innocent unborn race; and 
while Jesus Christ shines in the eternal 
w r orld as a precious jew r el of God, and 
angels and archangels who behold Judas 
Iscariot and Jesus Christ co-operating to- 
gether to bring this event to a close, by 
nailing the Son of man on the cross, who 
said in that condition ' c It is finished, " and 
angels from the portals of heaven, singing 
to man the redemption of the race through 
the blood of Jesus Christ, and the betrayer 
Judas Iscariot. And in view of all this, 
if this Scripture be true, Jesus Christ 
mocked and abused Judas Iscariot, after 
using him as a tool to consummate this 



356 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

event, by pronouncing a severe woe upon 
Judas for betraying Him. 

Matt. xxvi. 24 : tc The Son of man goeth 
as it is written of Him, but woe unto that 
man by whom the Son of man is betrayed ; 
it had been good for that man if he had 
not been born. " 

St. Luke xxii. 21, 22: ct But, behold, 
the hand of him that betrayeth me is with 
me on the table, and truly the Son of man 
goeth, as it was determined ; but woe unto 
that man by whom he is betrayed." 

Examine this Scripture in regard to this 
event, as we find it, then see if it is neces- 
sary to criticise this Scripture, by the in- 
telligence and culture of mind in this age 
of the nineteenth century. 

The above Scripture in this chapter is 
proof of the determination of God as pro- 
phesied in the Old Testament and also 
in the New; that Judas Iscariot was born 
and chosen for this purpose, and God and 
Jesus Christ knew, when God chose him as 
a disciple, that Judas was an unbeliever 
and a devil, and God selected him for the 
express purpose to betray Jesus Christ. 
And because Judas did as God purposed he 



Judas Iscariot. 357 

should do to bring about this sacrifice, then 
Jesus from his own mouth pronounced this 
woe upon Judas Iscariot for doing just 
what God purposed he should do, and Jesus 
Christ knew it when He chose him. 

St. John xvii. 12 : Now, notice what 
Jesus says : ' w While I was with them in 
the world I kept them in thy name' 7 ; that is 
the name of God, and not Himself; ct those 
that thou gavest me I have kept, and none 
of them are lost, but the son of perdition," 
that is ruin, loss, death, that the Scripture 
might be fulfilled. 

Reader, do you want this any plainer ? 
According to the Scriptures as prophesied, 
Judas Iscariot was chosen hundreds of 
years before his birth, by God, as a vessel 
of dishonor, and doomed to this condition. 
And now after God has used Him to carry 
out His purpose, God, whose name is love, 
damns him, if this above Scripture be 
true; but thank God it is not all true, which 
I will show as I proceed. 

I will now compare Scripture and see if 
they harmonize together and no collision. 

St. John vii. 70. A. D. 32. Jesus was 
at Capernaum preaching the gospel, and 



358 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

while there he said to his disciples, ' ' Have 
not I chosen you twelve, and one of yon is 
a devil." 

A. D. 33. We find in St. John xiii. 27: 
ct And after the sop Satan entered into 
him." One year before this Jesus called 
Judas a devil. If Judas was a devil then, 
he was before he took the sop, to have Sa- 
tan enter Into him, for he could not be a 
devil without having Satan into him, ac- 
cording to this Scripture. Here is a col- 
lision which is true according to the prin- 
ciple involved in the new covenant. Judas 
did not fall until just before the betrayal. 
Judas was a good man at the time that Je- 
sus said he was a devil. Did Jesus make 
that remark to Judas and his disciples at 
that time ? No, never, never. If he did, 
Jesus with his own mouth destroys the 
foundation of the new covenant, and wipes 
out the freedom of man to make a choice, 
and leaves man without any responsibility, 

Matt. x. We find in this chapter, that 
Jesus selected Judas Iscariot as one of his 
twelve disciples, to preach his gospel and 
build up the spiritual kingdom of heaven 
in the souls of men. Jesus gave the twelve 



Judas Iscariot. 359 

power to preach, and heal the sick, and 
cast out devils ; and they went and 
preached, and healed the sick, and cast 
out devils. Now comes the question. How 
could Judas Iscariot cast out devils while 
he was a (Jevil himself ? This is mockery; 
it is in opposition to the immutable law of 
God. 

St. John ii. 24, 25: t; But Jesus did not 
commit himself unto them, because he 
knew all men, and needed not that any 
should testify of man, for he knew what 
was in man." Chap. vi. 64: tc But there 
are some of you that believe not, for Jesus 
knew from the beginning who they were 
that believed not, and who should betray 
him." There is no chance here for an ar- 
gument; it says that Jesus knew all men, 
and what was in man. Jesus said, ' 'There 
are some of you," that is Judas, tc that be- 
lieved not, for Jesus knew from the begin- 
ning who they were that believed not, and 
who should betray him. " What beginning ? 
When was this beginning ? It was the time 
Jesus selected his twelve disciples, and Ju- 
das Iscariot being one of them. Now if this 
Scripture is reliable, Jesus knew that Ju- 



360 Dager*s Interpretation of the Bible. 

das Iscariot was an unbeliever and a devil 
at the time he selected his twelve apostles. 
If not, then there is no meaning to Scrip- 
ture. The facts of this case are as fol- 
lows, and the principle in this matter, 
evolving from Scripture, will justify the 
statement. It is contrary, and not in har- 
mony with the law and doctrine contained 
in the New Testament, that God, through 
Jesus Christ, would select a devil as one of 
the twelve to introduce and preach the 
gospel of the new dispensation to the world 
as final, and the last covenant to redeem the 
race of man from spiritual death, Would 
God and Jesus Christ select a devil for a 
disciple to take part in building up the 
church of God, when he has forbidden the 
churches in all ages to keep themselves 
clean; and not allow a devil to preach to 
the world. Would God be a hypocrite, 
and do what he forbid man to do ? Never, 
never. When God selected those twelve 
disciples, they were clean, and fit subjects 
to introduce the word of God to the world. 
Man, then as now, was made subject to sin, 
and liable to fall. This was the case, with 
our dear brother Judas Iscariot — he fell. 



Judas Iscariot. 361 

Let us examine the make-up of Judas 
Iscariot as we find him portrayed in Scrip- 
ture. One failing we find in Judas, and it 
was a besetting sin to him — he was a lover 
of money, and greedy to get it, This was 
the besetting sin that caused the fall of Ju- 
das Iscariot; and in view of this, we find 
that Judas, with all of his failings, was a 
man of love and deep sympathy towards 
his fellow man. While Judas was in this 
condition of lusting after money, he yield- 
ed to the temptation that he created within 
himself. 

Matt. xxvi. 14, 15: li Went unto the 
chief priests and covenanted with them for 
thirty pieces of silver, and from that time 
he sought opportunity to betray him." 
Verse 48: t4 And Judas betrayed Jesus with 
a kiss. 77 Chap, xxvii. tc And when they 
had bound him, they led him away, and 
delivered him to Pontius Pilate, the gov- 
ernor. Then Judas which had betrayed 
him, when he saw that he was condemned, 
repented himself, and brought again the 
thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests 
and elders, saying, I have sinned in that 
I have betrayed the innocent blood;, and 

22 



362 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

he cast down the pieces of silver in the 
temple and departed and went and hanged 
himself. " Through ignorance and the ef- 
fect of sin, Judas became spiritually blind, 
but when he saw the effect of that betrayal 
he became convicted and condemned in his 
soul for the crime, and repented, saying, 
as an honest man would say, c ; I have sin- 
ned in that I have betrayed the innocent 
blood." And in this condition, with a 
sense of this crime he repented and ac- 
knowledged to the world that he had be- 
trayed innocent blood. With the guilt 
resting upon his soul he became insane, 
and went and hanged himself. If this 
Scripture be reliable, this betrayal had to 
be made to fulfill the Scripture. Judas 
Iscariot was the man selected by God to 
betray Jesus Christ. Judas Iscariot, when 
chosen a disciple, was ignorant as to what 
the purpose of God was in selecting him 
to take part in this ministry. In this case 
Judas Iscariot was as innocent as a child 
as to the purpose of God in selecting him 
as a disciple to take part in the consumma- 
tion of this great event; and his part to 
perform in the consummation of this event 



Judas Iscariot. 363 

was to betray Jesus Christ, as we find it in 
Scripture. And in this condition of ignor- 
ance on the part of Judas, he betrayed the 
Son of man, and when he found that he 
had betrayed innocent blood, Judas felt 
condemned for the crime, which was the 
effect of the immutable law of cause and 
effect. And in view of all this, who is re- 
sponsible for this betrayal, Grod or Judas 
Iscariot \ We will admit that Judas acted 
with his free will power after being select- 
ed. Should that make him responsible for 
the crime, when Grod placed him there, and 
not a choice of Judas, to carry out the 
purpose of God by putting Judas in a po- 
sition to make him a betrayer ? Justice 
and equity speak from the portals of 
heaven, and declare that Grod is responsi- 
ble, and not Judas Iscariot. 

Judas Iscariot was not lost from Grod, for 
he still remained his disobedient son. He 
was lost from the part he took as a disci- 
ple, and the office was taken away from 
him, and his diocese given to another, and 
the son of perdition, which means ruin, 
loss, death. It ruined Judas when he lost 
his discipleship; it was a loss to him; he 



364 D dyer's Interpretation of the Bible. 

disobeyed the law of God, which is death 
in a figure, but the true meaning is pun- 
ishment for sin, not eternal, but limited, 
for the good of Judas. 

In view of the above Scripture, touching 
this question of Judas Iscariot, it is posi- 
tive proof that fatalism with man is true, 
and especially in the case of Judas Iscariot. 
I have presented enough Scripture in this 
of Judas Iscariot to prove that God created 
Judas to be a disciple and to betray Jesus 
Christ, knowing when he selected him that 
he would in the nature of his own being, 
and that he would do it through his ignor- 
ance, not knowing the effect of it. Ac- 
cording to the law of justice and equity, 
God cannot hold .man responsible for his 
acts in case God interferes with the free- 
dom of man, and places him in a position 
not of his own choice. In view of this, and 
in harmony with the law of justice and 
equity, God must be responsible for the 
acts of man while acting. in this condition, 
and be released from the effects of those 
acts. 

This was the precise case with Judas 
Iscariot, if Scripture be true touching this 



Judas Iscariot. 365 

question. It says in the above Scripture 
that God purposed that Judas Iscariot 
should be born for the purpose to betray 
Jesus Christ, by placing him in a position 
not of his own choice. God brought Judas 
into this world with no choice of his own. 
He gave him His nature by His own law, 
with no choice of his own, and through his 
nature and the condition that he was 
placed in, and the surroundings of Judas 
Iscariot gave him a character ; let it be 
good or bad. Judas grew up to be a man, 
and when the time came to have the Scrip- 
ture fulfilled in regard to Judas, God now 
interferes with the freedom and avocation 
of Judas, and through the person of Jesus 
Christ God selects Judas Iscariot for one of 
His apostles, placing Judas in a position 
not of his own choice. He accepted the 
position, and his accepting this position by 
his own freedom did not destroy the prin- 
ciple embodied in the law of justice and 
equity, and did not excuse God from His 
responsibility in placing Judas in that 
position of a disciple. When God placed 
Judas Iscariot in that position, to bring 
about the betrayal of Jesus Christ, God then 



366 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

became responsible by law for all the acts 
done by J udas while holding that position. 
God selected Judas for that position, for 
the purpose of betraying Jesus Christ. If 
God would not have interfered, and left 
Judas in his daily avocation, he never 
would have betrayed Jesus Christ. For it 
was the position that God placed Judas in 
was the means; and the nature of this posi- 
tion that sui rounded the being of Judas Is- 
cariot led him to betray the Son of man. 
And in view of this fact, and the principle 
of justice that governs all law, God is 
responsible, and not Judas Iscariot. If 
there is any meaning to this Scripture 
touching this case, then Judas Iscariot 
should be released and exonerated, and not 
punished for the betrayal of Jesus Christ. 
In view of all this, when Judas Iscariot, 
according to Scripture, found that he had 
betrayed innocent blood, he was sorry and 
repented, and went and gave the silver back 
to the priests, and said, c 4 Ihave sinned, ,? and 
acknowledged this sin to the world as soon 
as he became guilty of the crime, and felt 
so bad about it that he went and hanged 
himself. 



Judas Iscariot. 367 

Where is the consistency of this Scrip- 
ture I Do we find the principle of justice 
and equity embodied in it, as we find it in 
this case of Judas Iscariot ? Is God love ? 
Does He act upon the principles of His own 
attributes ? If so, do we find it in this 
case, in this consideration now before us ? 
If the Scripture be true touching this case, 
then God is a traitor, and beneath the no- 
tice of man, that He created. 

Scripture tells us that God made Judas 
Iscariot for the express purpose to betray 
Jesus Christ, and when the time came He 
selected him as one of the apostles, and in 
this selection, if this Scripture be true, then 
took the advantage of the ignorance of 
Judas Iscariot, and placed him in the 
position of an apostle, knowing when He 
put him there, that Judas, while acting in 
that position, would betray the Son of man, 
just as God purposed he should, as we find 
in the Scripture that we have referred to. 
Why did Judas feel condemned? Because he 
betrayed Jesus Christ through ignorance, 
not knowing the effect of betrayal while 
occupying that position, that God was re- 
sponsible for selecting Judas Iscariot to 



368 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible, 

take a part in the ministry, and through 
ignorance on his part as to what would 
occur while in the ministry. And in view 
of these facts, we find some Scripture con- 
demning Judas as the son of perdition, and 
Jesus pronounced a woe upon him, and 
says: lt It had been better if he had never 
been born, than to betray the Son of man." 
Look at the mockery of this Scripture, 
where it says to the world that God created 
Judas Iscariot, for the purpose of betray- 
ing Jesus Christ ; and because he did be- 
tray Him through ignorance, then Scrip- 
ture says that God and Jesus Christ con- 
demned Judas for the act, and call him 
son of perdition. 

Oh ! Consistency, thou art a jewel. And 
in the name of reason and common sense, 
is there any to be found in this Scripture 
touching this case. And in view t>f all 
these facts, we find in this age of the nine- 
teenth century, some very pious people 
saying to the world: - ' Do not criticise the 
Scripture, but take it as it reads, and do 
not reason with it on your part, for it is all 
the word of God.' 7 Oh ! mother of ignor- 
ance, thou art a child of hell. And while 



Judas Iscariot. 369 

truth is smothering under the debris of this 
element, and through the development of 
mind, truth must and will come forth 
and shine as a precious jewel of God, and 
dictate its rights to the world as an attri- 
bute of God. And upon the walls of this 
walls will be written these words: tc Truth 
hath conquered, " the principle that evolved 
from the death of the Son of man and 
Judas Iscariot, the betrayer. 

Jesus Christ and Judas Iscariot were two 
of the greatest benefactors that the world 
ever produced. Through these two the 
redemption of the world was secured, and 
without the co-operation of the two, the 
world would have remained in spiritual 
darkness, Judas Iscariot was a necessary 
element in taking a part with Jesus Christ 
to bring about and consummate this great 
event, the redemption of the world. And 
if there is any truth in the fundamental 
principles of Scripture, then Judas Iscariot, 
as a finite spirit, is a bright and shining 
light in the paradise of (iod. And in view 
of this, we hardly ever hear an ecclesiastic 
of some of our churches speak a kind word 
in behalf of Judas Iscariot, but hear from 
their pulpits Judas, the son of perdition, 
the lost soul, eternally lost. 



CHAPTER XIX. 



EQUITY. 

eQUITY, that impartial principle that 
crowns the Godhead, the great equilib- 
rium that holds the universe in its place. 
Eternity would be void of a name, and non- 
entity would be its annihilation, and the 
light of this universe would lose its power, 
and leave the nations of the earth to grope 
their way in darkness. Withdraw the 
principle of equity from the Godhead, the 
earth would be void of an equilibrium to 
guide its course and hold it in its orbit. 
Disrobe the earth of this great impartial 
principle that evolves from equity, equilib- 
rium would lose its power. World after 
world would meet in collision, and be 
as if they never existed. God would be 
helpless in the government of the starry 
worlds, and they would be left alone to 
float in space only to clash and dash each 
other to pieces. Equity, the great essen- 
tial attribute of God, that holds the worlds 



Equity. 371 

together in harmony with each other, that 
educates the nations of the earth on an 
equilibrium that will elevate them on a 
high plane of civilization and Christianity. 
Take away the principle that evolves from 
equity, and the power enclosed within, 
it would disrobe the nations of earth of 
that impartial principle, and leave them as 
the beasts of the field, and instead of a 
spiritual cultivation, man would be led and 
governed by the animal, and through the 
product of that education, human blood 
would flow upon the streets of the great 
cities of the world, and instead of civiliza- 
tion and Christianity as the guiding ele- 
ment, based upon the principle of equity, 
equilibrium would lose its power, and the 
nations of the earth left to themselves with- 
out a system of order to guide them only 
in the w^ay of destruction and death, and 
never to be remembered as an entity of 
man, and only to remain throughout all 
eternity as if it never existed. 

The planets in their solar system move 
in their orbits through the principle of 
equity and equilibrium. The basis of 
those elements that attract and repel, and 



372 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

hold the planets in their respective places, 
throngh the wisdom and power of God. The 
immutable law of God is unchangeable. 
A man or nation that does not honor or 
respect the law of equity and ignores it, 
must suffer the penalty in proportion of 
the magnitude of the crime for disobedi- 
ence. 

Equity is an equalizer to make equal, 
and gives equilibrium to all things: equal- 
ity of weight; power or force; level position, 
these elements, and these alone, if honored 
and cultivated into the hearts of the peo- 
ple as an established principle to guide 
them to all the affairs pertaining to life, 
it would create heaven in the hearts of the 
nations, and scatter hell to the four winds 
of the earth. Human blood would cease 
to flow through strife and carnage of war ; 
peace and good will to men would take its 
place, and as a reward, God would open the 
windows of heaven and pour out a blessing 
upon the nations of the earth that could 
not be contained; angels would visit the 
earth in pride and not in shame. These 
principles established and put in practice 
and lived up to as a rule of life, would turn 



Equity. 373 

the prisons into reformatory schools; there 
would be no thieves to molest ; man could 
feleep in his castle without bolt or lock to 
protect. 

Equity is the great principle that under- 
lies the universe, the foundation for all 
principles to rest upon, the guiding star to 
educate and elevate man with an equilib- 
rium that will make him a fit subject to 
co-operate with God in the final consumma- 
tion of all things to himself. Through 
equity Jesus Christ gave His life to save a 
lost world. Equity gave life to the new 
covenant and made it the shining star 
to disperse darkness from the nations 
of the earth, and to be the great pyramid 
of the world, to reconcile the nations in 
harmony with the principle that evolves 
from it. Upon the principle of equity, 
Grod made the worlds, and gave the plan- 
etary system an equilibrium to guide and 
told them in their places. Withdraw 
these great principles from the universe, 
and nonentity would be the final result. 
Equity is the foundation of all civilization 
and Christianity among the nations of the 
the earth. It is the keystone of the new 



374 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

covenant to christianize the world, and 
bring it in subjection to the obedience and 
bow in humility, and honor its authority. 

Some three centuries past, Galileo, that 
great and noble man, was brought into ex- 
istence as an entity by the power of God, 
and one of the greatest benefactors the 
world ever produced. He was born a nat- 
ural astronomer, and the principle of equi- 
ty and equilibrium were the basis and 
guiding star in giving to the world an edu- 
cation unknown to man in that age. The 
nations of the earth were in a condition of 
lethargy and ignorance. He was born a 
chosen vessel to introduce a new truth to 
the world. The burden of this truth rested 
upon him to hurl it to the nations of the 
earth, though his life be in jeopardy for 
its introduction; it must be executed and 
brought to the surface though blood fol- 
lows its path. Galileo, true to his nature, 
and his God, came to the front with his 
life in his hand, and announced to the 
world that this earth did revolve, and was 
not flat and stationary. The result of that 
announcement to the ignorance of man in 
that age, did not surprise the great princi- 



Equity. 375 

pie of equity, but expected strife and blood- 
shed as the result of a great truth made 
known to man. 

Now comes the time when Galileo must 
be tested, and tried as by fire — the faith 
and confidence he had in an invisible God. 
He stood the test, and said to the world, 
The earth revolves. The great bombshell 
of truth then exploded; it startled the 
world, and caused the science of that age 
to tremble, and brought the theologians of 
the Christian religion of that age to awake 
from their ignorance and superstition of a 
false devotion to God; but while the scales 
were still upon their eyes, believing that 
the earth was fiat, and did not move, and 
a part of their dogma, fearing that their 
church was in danger of destruction, they 
ordered Galileo to close his mouth and keep 
silent, or death would be his doom. This 
was a severe trial for Galileo to pass 
through; it was life or death to Galileo, 
and this truth, in that age that God sent 
him to give to the world. Galileo, as a 
thinking man, kept silent for a time, but 
while in consideration as to the purpose of 
what he was born for, it filled his soul, 



876 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

and again he gave vent to his feelings, and 
speaks to the world and says, The earth 
revolves. Through this announcement 
once more, through the great man Galileo, 
the church forgot their God, and forgot 
that murder, the greatest crime on earth 
committed by man; but under the light of 
their pretended religion, they murdered 
Galileo in cool blood for advocating a 
truth that stands as a pyramid to the civil- 
ized nations of the nineteenth century, and 
and will continue on to stand down to the 
end of time. The name of Galileo, the 
great astronomer, will live in history, 
and remain as a monument to the nations 
of the earth until man ceases to be born. 
This is only one case among thousands of 
others, where blood has followed its path 
through executing its authority. Truth, 
the basis of equity, has moved heaven and 
earth at times to bring this noble principle 
to the surface out of the debris of ignor- 
ance, caused by the education of a false 
doctrine, taking darkness for light, being 
deceived thereby. 

Jesus Christ, the Son of God, when 
nailed upon the cross, and shed his blood 



Equity. 377 

to redeem man from death, speaks to the 
world, 4t It is finished; 77 equity then puts 
on its wedding garments and speaks from 
the portal of heaven that God is no respecter 
of persons. Equity, the great principle that 
gives honor and dignity to the Godhead as 
an attribute, knows no nationality nor 
color, but speaks to man with an impartial 
principle, "Doye unto others as ye would 
have them do unto you. 7 ' The nations of 
the earth, if living in harmony with this 
principle, would give honor and glory to 
the authority evolving from equity. Jesus 
Christ speaks to the world as man never 
spake before, and says that upon equity 
hangs the destiny of man. It is the foun- 
dation of the new covenant, the life prin- 
ciple that brings salvation to man. From 
it comes the issues of life and a true bal- 
ance in all things. Man educated with 
that glorious principle, equilibrium, makes 
him a fit subject to deal out equity in all 
things pertaining to his life; he bows to 
its authority with his eyes fixed to that 
goal that will lead him into the kingdom 
of heaven. 

Equity is a leading attribute of God, 

23 



378 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

containing the elements of justice, impar- 
tiality, fairness; and into this attribute of 
equity is inclosed the infinite love of God, 
speaking in silence to the spirit of man, 
that whoever, without respect of persons, 
bows in humility and obedience to the 
authority of the principle of equity that 
issues from the fountain of God, shall be 
honored and blessed with a reward and a 
crown of glory in that world that knows 
no death. Equity has no line of distinc- 
tion drawn between man and man; it 
reaches out its hand to the poor and the 
pauper of earth just as willingly as to the 
high and lofty that occupy the great posi- 
tions of earth. It knows but one happi- 
ness, which is heaven within; it recognizes 
that man with a broken heart and a con- 
trite spirit, who bows in obedience to the 
authority of equity, let him be high or low, 
rich or poor. Equity, the infinite principle 
that holds the universe in its place, and in 
the advanced thought and culture of the 
nineteenth century, cannot look upon sin 
with the least degree of allowance. The 
high and lofty, as well as the low, must be 
judged in harmony with the law of equity, 
giving equal rights to all. 



Equity. 379 

When the man Jesus Christ was nailed 
upon the cross, the spirit and principle of 
equity had a new resurrection through the 
body and blood of that sacrifice, and in 
place of the letter and of death, contained 
in the Jewish covenant, it gave man life 
and a blessed immortality beyond the 
grave. Equity, through that sacrifice, was 
honored; it gave new life to the nations of 
the earth through the constitution of the 
new covenant that was established through 
the principles of justice, impartiality, fair- 
ness, that noble attribute of equity that 
shines and holds its scepter as an emblem 
of sovereignty over the nations of the 
earth through the new covenant that gave 
its birth, speaking to the world that this 
covenant is the last and final covenant that 
will be issued from the courts of heaven 
for the salvation of the human race. 
Equity is the basis of the door, the way, the 
life, through the Spirit of Grod that was 
manifested in the flesh, and gave the body 
as a spotless sacrifice to redeem man from 
the curse of the Jewish law into the lib- 
erty of the new covenant. Equity is writ- 
ten upon its walls — the only way that man 



380 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

can secure a place in the kingdom of 
heaven. 

The religion of the new dispensation 
has its basis upon equity, the principle that 
gives character and nobility to the consti- 
tution of the new covenant— equity the fore- 
most principle incorporated into the relig- 
ion that Jesus Christ introduced into this 
world, broad enough, with an impartial 
spirit, with the wings of love and mercy 
extending over the entire earth, speaking 
from the courts of its authority, saying, 
ct Come unto me, all ye that labor and are 
heavy laden, and I will give you rest." 
What an impartial invitation Christ gives 
to man — equity written in letters of blood 
upon the walls of the second covenant — 
the invisible God speaking to man through 
his angel, saying, 4 ' Him that is athirst, 
Come;. and whosoever will, let him take of 
the water of life freely." Withdraw the 
principle of equity from the religion of 
Jesus Christ, the world would be without 
an eqilibrium, and in harmony with the 
carnal mind of man. The rich, in that 
condition, could buy their way into heaven, 
while the poor, without a friend, w^ould be 
left into the slums of hell. 



Equity. 381 

John viii. While Jesus was in the tem- 
ple, he sat down and taught them; and 
while there, the scribes and Pharisees, who 
were under Jewish authority, who felt ex- 
alted above the common people while in 
worship to God, would through their pride 
and supposed nobility of character, while 
in their worship, as a habit and part 
of their religion, strain at gnats and swal- 
low camels, and while in the act of swal- 
lowing one of these camels, some Scribes 
and Pharisees, the so-called saints of the 
Jewish church, brought unto Christ a poor 
woman taken in adultery, in the very act. 
Imagine for a moment how those proud 
Pharisees felt; listen a moment to their 
thoughts, thinking within themselves, 
4 ' Jesus, we think we have you in a tight 
place. Moses in the law commanded that 
such should be stoned; but what sayest 
thou ?" But Jesus Christ, the Son of God, 
soon put them to silence through executing 
the principle of equity. Jesus stooped 
down and with his finger wrote on the 
ground, and said unto them, ct He that is 
without sin among you, let him first cast a 
stone at her. 7 ' 



382 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

In a few moments these white -washed 
saints of the Jewish church left one by one 
until they all were gone, and Jesus the son 
of God left alone with this poor, weak 
woman that fell from the path of virtue. 
Did Jesus, the son of God, forsake this 
poor woman while in this condition I No, 
no, he did not, neither did He condemn 
her, but through the loving soul of our 
elder brother, He said, ' ' Go and sin no 
more. 77 Jesus Christ, the son of God, was 
clothed with the purity and holiness from 
God ; based upon equity, the immortal 
principle of justice ; impartiality, that 
equalizes and deals out justice to man, and 
speaks to the world. No more eye for eye 
and tooth for tooth, but let this principle 
be foremost in your daily acts ; render 
good for evil. This example that Christ 
made in this case, we should imitate, and 
help lift the unfortunate from the gutter 
of death, and not stain at nats, as the 
Scribes and Pharisees did in trying to 
stone to death this poor woman that fell, 
whom Jesus succored and helped in time of 
need. 

This act in Jesus Christ was glorious in 



Equity. 383 

its character, and written as a memorial, 
and placed in Scripture as an immortal 
principle for man to imitate; in this act 
of our Elder Brother in defending this 
poor woman from being stoned to death by 
the proud and haugnty Pharisees of the 
Jewish world. Equity, with its glory, 
brightness, luster and splendor, was hon- 
ored and exalted through Jesus Christ as 
the leading principle incorporated in the 
new covenant, and the basis of the Chris- 
tian religion of this dispensation. Jesus 
Christ came into the world to save sinners, 
and in this case He saved a poor woman 
that fell from virtue into the gutter of 
prostitution, only to be stoned to death by 
the Scribes and Pharisees. Jesus Christ 
in this act showed Himself a man, true to 
His Grod, through the exercise of His au- 
thority, and denounced the woes upon the 
Scribes and Pharisees, found in Matt, xxiii : 
ic Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, 
hypocrites, for ye shut the kingdom of 
heaven against men; for ye neither go in 
yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are 
entering to go in. 

tc Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, 



384 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

hypocrites, for ye devour widows houses, 
and for a pretense make long prayer ; 
therefore ye shall receive the greater dam- 
nation. 

tc Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, 
hypocrites, for ye compass land anr* sea to 
make one proselyte, and when he is made, 
ye make him twofold more the child of hell 
than yourselves. 

4 L Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, 
hypocrites, for ye pay tithe of mint and 
anise and cummin, and have omitted the 
weightier matters of the law: judgment, 
mercy and faith" ; these ought ye to have 
done, and not to leave the other undone, 
that is pay the expense of the church. 

ct Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, 
hypocrites, for ye are like unto whited 
sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful 
outward, but are within full of dead men's 
bones, and of all uncleanness. 

' ' Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, 
how can ye escape the damnation of hell ? 

ct Ye blind guides, which strain at a 
gnat and swallow a camel. 

1 ' For they say and do not ; for they bind 
heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, 



Equity. 385 

and lay them on man's shoulders ; but they 
themselves will not move them with one of 
their fingers. 

! ' But all their works they do for to be 
seen of men; they make broad their phylac- 
teries," that means, their parchment with 
Scriptures written on it, ' 'and enlarge the 
borders of their garments." 

1 ' And love the uppermost rooms at 
feasts, and the chief seats in the syna- 
gogues, 

' l And greetings in the market, and to be 
called of men: Rabbi, Rabbi," meaning a 
Jewish doctor, chief, master. 

What an example for the chosen people 
of God to give to the world, to civilize it and 
christianize it. Is it a wonder that Jesus 
Christ, the son of God, pronounced these 
woes upon that people, and the final de- 
struction of their nationality in A. D. 70 ? 
They lost sight as a people, of the princi- 
ple of equity, and put it under their feet, 
and cultivated vanity in its place, and by 
it became blind and fell, and great was the 
fall. 

The cultivated intelligence of the nine- 
teenth century, is considering the con- 



386 Dager^s Interpretation of the Bible. 

dition of the Christian world, with an im- 
parial view, based upon the principle of 
equity, and with an honest examination 
into some of onr religions institutions of 
this age of the Gentile world. How do we 
find them, and what is their condition ? Do 
we find any Scribes and Pharisees, hypo- 
crites, in the present age, as in the Jewish 
age ? Let these institutions answer them- 
selves. Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, 
are written upon the wall of their profes- 
sion and institution, standing out like a 
pyramid to the world for man to behold, 
and while in the act of looking at it, it 
causes the worst sinner upon earth to shed 
tears and mourn over its condition. Heaven 
is draped in mourning ; angels weep over 
its condition. Equity, that impartial prin- 
ciple of justice is lost sight of by these 
Gentile Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, 
of the nineteenth century, and buried be- 
neath the debris of their religion, only to 
receive the greater damnation, as they of 
the Jewish world. 

Pharisaism has found its way down 
through nineteen centuries, and holding a 
prominent place in some of our religious in- 



Equity. 387 

stitutions of this age. When we see a mem- 
ber of a religious institution love the upper- 
most rooms at a feast, and the chief seats in 
the church, and the work they do for to be 
seen of man, and who make clean the out- 
side of the cup and of the platter, but 
within they are full of extortion and ex- 
cess, and swell up in the attitude to stain 
at a gnat and swallow a camel, I say, when 
we see a person of this character, beware, 
watch him for he will pick your pickets if 
an opportunity is open. Is there any of 
this kind to-day ? I hope not. I wished 
there was none. But notwithstanding I 
will obey the voice from heaven that speaks 
to man and says, 4 ' Be wise as a serpant 
and harmless as a dove," and when one of 
these approach you in the attitude of strain- 
ing at a gnat and getting ready to swallow 
a camel, beware, and be sure you know 
your money is in a safe place. 

If this world is ever civilized and Chris- 
tianized, it must be done upon the basis of 
equity, that impartial principle that gives 
character and nobility to the Godhead. 
This attribute of God gives to the world 
equality. Equalizing all things through an 



388 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

equilibrium that holds the universe to- 
gether, and as a principle educated in 
man, would in its nature and in time de- 
stroy the unbalanced principle of Pharise- 
ism from the religious institution of this 
age, and in its place, equity and equilib- 
rium would shine in its splendor, and writ- 
ten upon the walls of these institution as 
an eternal principle, and upheld by the 
power of God, that speaks to the world and 
says, tc I am no respector of persons; equal 
rights to all ; and this poor woman that was 
caught in adultery is my erring daughter, 
and I will not allow the Pharisaism of the 
Jewish age to stone her to death, but 
will, through her sorrowful soul, extend to 
her the benefit of My love, and My justice 
evolving from the principle of equity." 

Matt. Chapter vi. It is claimed by some 
of our early writers that St. Matthew wrote 
this book, and he wrote it in Hebrew. 
When it was written is a question. Some 
writers claim it was written between 50 
and 60 A. D. ; some writers claim it was 
written later. We find in this chapter 
where Jesus Christ commanded His disci- 
ples to pray after this manner, and then 



Equity. 389 

repeated a prayer of form. Ritual in its 
character, it was a model prayer. We find 
in this chapter all manner of prayer, ex- 
cept this formal prayer, is now abolished, 
and this formal prayer to be the standard 
prayer to be used in His church, that He 
came to establish. 

Dear reader, where is our religious in- 
stitutions to-day ? Do they follow this com- 
mand that Jesus Christ gave to the world 
as final, or do we find them doing just what 
Jesus Christ condemned and abolished? 
Judge for yourselves. Jesus says: 4t By 
the fruit ye shall know them. " It is a 
question whether Jesus Christ repeated this 
prayer word for word as we find it in King 
James version. If this prayer was intended 
to have it bases upon the principle of 
equity, coming from God through Jesus 
Christ, then it is evident from the contents 
of this prayer that Jesus Christ never re- 
peated this prayer as found in King James 
version. There is one mistake in this 
prayer, that is the word lead. cc Lead 
us not into temptation." If that word lead 
is correct in its literal language, coming 
from Grod through Jesus Christ, then it is 



390 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

evident that God is at war with Himself, 
the Bible stands as a libel before the world. 
If this word lead is correct, then it is proof 
of itself that God does lead man into temp- 
tation, and after God has led him there, 
then man must beg and pray to God to 
deliver him from evil. If this be true, man 
has no power and freedom. He becomes a 
mere tool for God to play with. God leads 
man into temptation, then this God, with 
His dignified authority, having man under 
His control, and says, - c Beg and pray like 
a good fellow, and I will deliver you from 
evil. 7 ' 

Is this the God of this universe, that 
says in Chap. xxvi. 41, "Watch and pray 
that ye enter not into temptation" ? No, 
this is not the God that speaks here, and 
says, " Lead us not into temptation," The 
God that says this is the Jewish imaginary 
God, and the very God hurled from many 
a pulpit in this age of the nineteenth cen- 
tury. Where is the principle of equity, 
that beautiful attribute that robes the 
Godhead with perfection ? If the word 
lead be true, then equity is buried under 
the debris of ignorance, and still nursed 



Equity. 391 

by most of our religious institutions of this 
age, who repeat from their pulpits the 
Lord's Prayer, ' l Lead us not into tempta- 
tion." 

James i. 13: tc Let no man say when he 
is tempted, I am tempted of God, for God 
cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempt- 
eth he any man." Here is a collision. It 
says here positively that God tempteth no 
man. If so, then God will not lead him 
into temptation; then why pray to God not 
to lead us into temptation ? This, in the 
light of common sense and reason, and 
equity, is mockery in the sight of God and 
man; and every time this prayer is repeat- 
ed from the pulpits of this land by saying, 
il Lead us not into temptation," is mockery 
in the sight of that God that says, 4 4 Nei- 
ther tempteth he any man." 

The late new version is correct, and in 
harmony with the principles that govern 
Scripture; and instead of saying, -'Lead 
us," it says, ct Leave us not into tempta" 
tion." That is reason and common sense, 
and based upon equity, that impartial prin- 
ciple of justice that gives character and 
nobility to God. 



392 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

Now comes the question, Why do the 
most of the religious institutions of the 
present age hold on to that word, l ' Lead 
us not into temptation," and not accept the 
word, " c Leave us not into temptation, " as 
given in the new version ? In the first 
place the word ' ' leave" is too liberal in its 
character, and instead of keeping up to 
the advanced thought and culture, by pro- 
gression, the principle that comes from 
equity, which will correct all mistakes 
made in the back versions, they prefer 
to remain in the old pagan theology, for 
fear they may lose their grip and influence 
over man, and hold him in ignorance and 
Pharisaism. Institutions of this character 
are born with the seed of the Jewish Scribe 
and Pharisee, that has found its way down 
through the past centuries, and these very 
institutions that hold on to this word 
' ' lead, " and ignore every liberal religious 
institution that has forever left behind 
that word 4t lead, "and accepted the word 
4 'Leave up not into temptation, " is evidence 
of itself that the nature and principle of 
their acts are Pharisaism. And at the 
present time equity is a stranger to all re- 



Equity. 393 

ligious institutions of that character. They 
claim to be the light and salt of the earth, 
to christianize the world to the doctrine 
they advocate, and in all the advanced 
thought and culture of this age they still 
cling to the old pagan theology, saying 
while in prayer, ' 4 Lead us not into tempta- 
tion," and every time they breathe that 
word out, 4t Lead," they insult God, and 
bring a reproach upon the religion of Je- 
sus Christ. 

This modern Pharisaism that exists to- 
day in the nineteenth century, is afraid 
to drop that word ci lead" out of the Lord's 
Prayer, and accept the w^ord ' c Leave us 
not into temptation." They fear that their 
members will get their eyes opened, and 
begin to think if that word 4t lead" is 
wrong, then there may be a great many 
other words in the same condition, and 
shake their faith in the religion they ad- 
vocate to the world as final; and in this 
condition the leaders hold on to the old 
dogma, regardless of the result, that they 
might hold their flock together in ignor- 
ance as to the true meaning of that word, 
ct lead." These institutions claim to be 



394 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

the only ecclesiastical church in the world 
that God recognizes as the true church for 
the race to enter into the kingdom of 
heaven. Any religious institution outside 
of this, that don't believe as they do, is 
branded as not ecclesiastical and bastards 
to G-od. This was the condition of the 
Jewish Scribes and Pharisees that Jesus 
Christ pronounced his woes upon. These 
institutions will not worship with a liberal 
religious institution that does not believe 
in the doctrine of vicarious atonement and 
the Trinity, and eternal misery and a per- 
sonal devil, and that the word ct lead 77 is 
correct, and the word ct leave, 77 as we find 
it in the new version, is not to be accepted. 
This is Pharisaism, and the glorious prin- 
ciple of equity is a stranger to their relig- 
ion. Is there any Scripture in the Bible 
that speaks to us and says we must believe 
the above statements to get life ? No, not 
any; but Jesus says, Ci If ye would have 
life, keep the commandments. 77 This is 
what we must do and believe in to get the 
new birth, which is life. Have we got to 
get this life in these Pharisaic institutions 
by believing their heathen pagan dogma, 



Equity. 395 

if not, be lost in eternal misery? Ob, con- 
sistency, thou art a jewel. Can it be 
found in any institution of this character I 
This is modern Pharisaism that strains at 
a gnat and swallows a camel. This is the 
class that compass sea and land to make 
one proselyte, and when he is made, 4 ' ye 
make him two-fold more the child of hell 
than yourselves." 

We have to regret that the biographies 
of Jesus were not written by himself, but 
were made up after' his death from recol- 
lections of the writers themselves, or from 
traditions obtained from others, and hence 
many of his sayings are vague declara- 
tions, difficult to be understood in their 
practical bearings; whereas if we had him 
present among us to explain his meaning, 
or if we had an additional line or two, . 
which may have been uttered by him, but 
which may have been omitted by the bi- 
ographer, we would have no difficulty in 
understanding him. Our only lesource, 
therefore, is to fall back upon our judg- 
ment, and interpret all such passages ac- 
cording to the spirit, and not according to 
the letter. 



396 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

This is the condition of the word "lead" 
in the Lord's Prayer. If Christ uttered 
this word "lead," then his doctrine is 
proof of itself that it is at war with the 
Scripture. There is one consideration to 
be observed in this case, and it is this :• 
This word "lead" found in the Lord's 
Prayer, with the surroundings of it, is not 
in harmony with the principle of equity, 
from the fact that all of the sayings of 
Christ are based upon equity, except a few 
we find in his sayings. We find another 
blunder that will not bear the test of jus- 
tice and equity, in Luke xiv. 26: "If any 
man come to me and hate not his father 
and mother, and wife and 'children, and 
brethren and sisters, yea, and his own life 
also, he cannot be my disciple. " 

It is to be regretted that this passage 
was not corrected in the late revision. It 
seems very strange that we should be re- 
quired to love our enemies, and at the same 
time to hate our families and kinsmen; and 
it suggests some serious error somewhere. 
Its true sense is found in Matt. x. 37: "He 
that loves father and mother more thanme 
is not worthy of me; and he that loves son 



Equity. 397 

or daughter more than me is not worthy of 
me." This last text is correct, for it is 
based upon God's eternal principle of jus- 
tice and equity, while the other is demor- 
alizing, and not in harmony with the prin- 
ciples that govern Scripture. The word 
''lead," in the Lord's Prayer should be 
be left out, and the word t4 leave" put into 
its place. 

This last text is, undoubtedly, the true 
rendering of Christ's words, it being reason- 
able and consistent with other Scripture. 
But Luke's words are simply revolting and 
unworthy of Jesus. It would seem hardly 
necessary to allude to the fact that this 
text has been so construed as to be inconsis- 
tent with the spirit of Christianity. Wher- 
ever any Scripture is mentioned in the 
Bible, . that has not the principle of equity 
as its basis, is spurious, and not reliable; 
and in the light and truth of all this, some 
religious institutions of this age close their 
eyes to it, and hold on to these texts that 
are inconsistent with the spirit of the re- 
ligion that they profess as their dogma. 
This is proof of itself that these institu" 
tions are not progressing, and are unworthy 



398 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

for the world to consider that they are the 
true church of God, but remain contented 
in those ignorant ruts that belong to ancient 
Pharisaism, and always ready to condemn 
an advanced truth revealed from God to 
man, through activity and study. As to 
the purpose of God through that impartial 
principle of equity, and in the considera- 
tion of the above statement, in what con- 
dition do we find the Christian religion in 
this age of the nineteenth century ? Is it 
advancing and progressing in harmony with 
the great principles incorporated in the 
new covenant, that it might be able, 
through the culture of the spirit of God, 
to christianize the world with that religion 
that Jesus Christ established to destroy 
death, and give life to the race of man ? It 
is to be regretted that we do not find the 
Christian religion in that condition and 
harmony, as laid down in the gospel, to 
demand and respect from God to bless and 
give them power through the spirit to bring 
about the great consummation of the race 
to God, that Jesus Christ might see the 
travail of His soul and be satisfied. 

Instead of being obedient to the laws of 



Equity. 399 

God, in harmony with the spirit and pro- 
gression on in the light of truth as God 
reveals it to man, these institutions, like 
the Pharisee of old, hold on and advocate 
words found in Scripture without author- 
ity and vague in its meaning, clinging with 
tenacity to the Calvinistic dogma, the seed 
of Paganism that had its root from Phari- 
saism in the apostolic age. And in this 
condition of the religious world, where 
shall shall we find equity honored ; that 
noble attribute of God that gives char- 
acter of pref ection to the Godhead ? Go 
to the uncivilized race in the dark parts of 
Africa, you will find the principle of equity 
born in the hearts of the heathen. Why 
is it that crime is on the increase ? The 
reason and common sense of man tells him 
why it is. If the Christian religion of this 
age was living up to the laws of God, crime 
would decrease and not increase. This is 
proof that God is not with them, and does 
not recognize Pharisaism in any age of the 
world. If there is any meaning to Scrip- 
ture, then it is proof of itself, that the 
Christian religion in this age is a failure, 
and will never be the means of converting 
the world to God. 



CHAPTER XX. 



IS THE CHRISTIAN RELIGION OF THIS AGE A 
FAILURE ? 



Answer. If the constitution of the law 
that is incorporated in the new covenant 
be true, then the present system of the 
Christian religion of the nineteenth cen- 
tury, and its effects upon the race, and 
and its operations in the minds of the peo- 
ple, and the character of the nations of the 
earth, shaped through its operation, is evi- 
dence of itself that it is a failure, and soon 
to be obliterated, and be as if it never had 
been. Its influence upon the race has 
caused the earth to be covered with dark- 
ness, through the influence of an apostate 
religion, which will soon find its grave at 
the consummation of this Gentile age. 
And the race to-day is in ignorance of 
God's plan for the recovery of the world 
from sin and in its consequences, and under 
the false idea that the nominal church in 
its present condition, is the sole agency for 



Is the Christian Religion a Failure. 401 

its accomplishment, The condition of the 
world to-day, after the gospel has been 
preached for nearly nineteen centuries, is 
such as to awaken serious doubt in every 
thoughtful mind so misinformed; and such 
doubts are not easily surmounted with any- 
thing short of the truth. In fact, to every 
thoughtful observer one of two things 
must be apparent; either the present relig- 
ion has made a great mistake in supposing 
that in the present age and in her present 
condition her office has been to convert the 
world, or else Grod 7 s plan has been a miser- 
able failure. Which horn of the dilemma 
shall we accept ? Many have, and many 
more, doubtless, will accept the latter, and 
swell the ranks of infidelity, either covertly 
or openly, in one way or the other, wor- 
shipping and serving the creature instead 
of the creator. Is there not enough here 

to sadden the hearts of thoughtful Chris- 
tians ? 

We find the following published by the 
London Missionary Society, and afterwards 
in the United States by the Woman's Pres- 
byterian Board of Missions. It is termed 
4 4 A Mute Appeal on behalf of Foreign Mis- 
sions": 



402 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

4 ' The ideas of some are very misty and 
indefinite in regard to the world's spiritual 
condition. We hear of glorious revival 
work at home and abroad ; of fresh mission- 
ary efforts in various directions ; of one 
country after another opening to the gos- 
pel, and of large sums being devoted to its 
spread, and we get the idea that adequate 
efforts are being made for the evangeliza- 
tion of the nations of the earth. It is es- 
timated to-day that the world's population 
is 1,424,000,000, and by studying the con- 
dition, we will see that considerably more 
than one-half, nearly two-thirds, are still 
totally heathen, and the remainder are 
mostly either followers of Mohammed or 
members of those great apostate churches, 
whose religion is practically a christianized 
idolatry, and who can scarcely be said to 
hold or teach the gospel of Christ. Even 
as to the 116 millions of nominal Protest- 
ants, we must remember how large a 
proportion in Germany, England and this 
country, have lapsed into infidelity, a 
darkness, if possible, deeper than even that 
of heathenism. And how many are blinded 
by superstition, or buried in extreme ignor- 



Is the Christian Religion a Failure. 403 

ance. So that while eight millions of Jews 
still reject Jesus of Nazareth, and while 
more that 300 millions who bear His name 
have apostatized from His faith, 170 mil- 
lions more bow before Mahomet, and the 
vast remainder of mankind are to this day 
worshippers of stocks and stones of their 
own ancestors of dead heroes." 

Truly this is a sad picture, and though 
the condition represent shades of difference 
between heathens, Mohammedans and Jews 
all are alike, in total ignorance of Christ. 
Some might at first suppose that this view 
with reference to the proportion of Chris- 
tians, is too dark and rather overdrawn, but 
we think the reverse of this. It shows nomi- 
nal Christianity in the brightest colors pos- 
sible. For instance, the 116,000,000 put 
down as Protestants is far in excess of the 
true number. Sixteen millions would we be- 
lieve more nearly express the number of pro- 
fessing church members of adult years, and 
one million would, we fear, be far too lib- 
eral an estimate of the 4t little flock," the 
i4 sanctified in Christ Jesus," who lt walk 
not after the flesh but after the spirit. " It 
should be borne in mind that a large pro- 



404 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

portion of church members, always num- 
bered in the reckoning are young children 
and infants. Specially is this the case in 
the countries of Europe. In many of these 
children are reckoned church members 
from earliest infancy. But dark as this 
picture appears, it is not the darkest pic- 
ture that fallen humanity presents. The 
above condition only represents the pres- 
ent living generations. When we consider 
the fact that century after century of the 
six thousand years past have swept away 
other vast multitudes, nearly all of whom 
were enveloped in the same ignorance and 
sin, how dark is the scene, viewed from 
a popular standpoint ! It is truly an awful 
picture! 

The various creeds of to-day teach that 
all of these billions of humanity, ignorant 
of the only name under heaven by which 
we must be saved, are on the straight road 
to eternal misery, and be companions of 
devils throughout all eternity. What a 
dark picture for the Christian religion of 
this age of thought and culture to advo- 
cate as a truth from the hand of a 
loving God. And not only so, but all 



Is the Christian Religion a Failure. 405 

of those 116,000,000 Protestants, except 
the very few saints, are sure of the 
same fate. No wonder then that those 
who believe such awful things of Grod's 
plans and purposes should be zealous in 
forwarding missionary enterprises. The 
wonder is that they are not frenzied by it, 
and distracted of mind, to really believe 
thus. And to appreciate such conclusions 
would rob life of every pleasure, and shroud 
in gloom every bright prospect of nature. 
Not only has the continued misery and 
darkness of the world, and the slow pro- 
gress of truth been a mystery to the church, 
but the world itself has known and felt its 
condition; like that which enveloped Egypt, 
it has been a darkness that could be felt. 
In evidence of this, note the spirit of the 
following lines, the doubt and gloom, in- 
tensified by the clashing creeds of the vari- 
ous schools. 

Life, great mystery, who shall say, 
What need hath God of this poor clay ? 
Formed by His hand with potent skill, 
M ini , matter, sonl and stubborn will ; 
Born but to die, sure destiny — death. 
Then wiiere, oh. where this fleeting breath ? 
Not one of all the countless throng, 
Who have lived and ctfed and suffered long, 
Returns to tell the great design 



406 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

That future, which is yours and mine. 
We plead, oh, God! for some new ray 
Of light, for guidance on our way ; 
Based not on faith, but clearer sight, 
Dispelling these dark clouds of night. 
This doubt, this dread, this trembling fear, 
This thought that mars our blessings here : 
This restless mind, with bolder sway, 
Rejects the dogmas of the day, 
Taught by jarring sects and schools, 
To fetter reason with their rules. 
We seek to know Thee as Thou art ; 
Our place with Thee, and then the part 
We play in this stupendous plan. 
Creator infinite, and man, 
Lift up this veil obscuring sight, 
Command again ' 'Let there be light !" 
Reveal this secret of Thy throne, 
We search in darkness the unknown. 

To this we reply : 

Life's unsealed mystery soon shall say. 
What joy hath God in this poor clay? 
Formed by His hand with potent skill. 
Stamped with His image, mind and will ; 
Born not to die, no, a second birth 
Succeeds the sentence, "earth to earth." 
For one of all the mighty host, 
Who lived and died and suffered most, 
Arose and proved God's great design. 
That future therefore, yours and mine, 
His word discloses this new ray 
Of light, for guidance on our way ; 
Based not on faith, but sure as sight, 
Dispelling these dark clouds of night ; 
The doubt, the dread, the trembling fear ; 
The thoughts that mar'd our blessings here. 
Now, Lord, these minds whose bolder sway, 



Is the Christian Religion a Failare. 407 

Reject the dogmas of to-day, 
Taught by jarring sects and schools. 
Fettering reason with their rules, 
May seek and know Thee as Thou art 
Our place with Thee, and then the part 
We play in this stupendous plan. 
Creator infinite, and man, 
Uplifts the veil, revealing quite 
To those w r ho walk in heaven's light, 
The glorious mystery of His throne, 
H'dden from ages, now made known. 

Such a blessing is now coming to the 
world through the unfolding of the divine 
purpose and opening of the divine word, 
of which blessing will be revealed to man. 
The condition of the so-called Christian re- 
ligion of the nineteenth century portrays 
to the thoughtful mind a dark picture. 
The truth contained in the creeds of the 
various sects is so covered and mixed with 
error that its inherent beauty and real 
value is not discernable. The various 
creeds continually conflict and clash, and 
as each claims a Bible basis, the confusion 
of thought and evident discord are charged 
to God's word; and this has given rise to 
the common proverb, 4t The Bible is an 
old fiddle upon which any tune can be 
played." 

How expressive is this of the infidelity- 



408 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

of our times, occasioned by misrepresenta- 
tions of God's word and character by hu- 
man traditions, together with the growth 
of intelligence which will no longer bow 
in blind and superstitious reverence to the 
opinions of fellow-men, but demands a rea- 
son for the hope that is in us. 

In view of what we have considered, and 
the demand coming from the law of God, 
regulating the system of religion in har- 
mony with the principle as its basis, guided 
and controlled by divine justice and 
equity. Hence, in view of this, the pres- 
ent Christian religion is a failure, and 
never can and never will convert the 
world to that religion that Christ estab- 
lished over eighteen hundred years ago. 
Why is this so ? Because they have apos- 
tatized from the principle of pure religion 
given to them from the hand of Jesus 
Christ, just as the Jews of old apostatized 
from the law of God given to Moses. The 
Jewish church would say what to do, but 
did not do it. This is the precise case of 
some of the present creeds and dogmas that 
say they will convert the world in harmony 
with the law of God, but never will do it, 



Is the Christian Religion a Failure. 409 

nor can do it, with the world in one hand, 
and God in the other. God cannot pros- 
per sin; this is why the world cannot be 
converted in this age, with the present 
system of religion. The prophet prophe- 
syed of this condition and apostacy of the 
church in this age. Nothing short of the 
next age will convert the world to the re- 
ligion of Jesus Christ; for the prophet 
says, in that age all the creeds and dogmas 
will find their grave, and one religion that 
God will justify to convert the w^orld into 
into one church, the church of God. 

What more can God do than what he 
has done for the happiness of man, if man 
will co-operate with God to bring the proper 
conditions so as to attain to that plane 
where happiness is secured by the co-oper- 
ation of God and man. This condition, 
and this alone, will bring to the soul a 
paradise of eternal bliss. 

Look at the system of laws laid down in 
the Bible to guide man in the path of vir- 
tue. These laws that God gave to Moses 
were without their equal, either in their 
day or since, until this nineteenth century, 
and the laws of this century are based 

25 



410 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

upon the principles laid down in the Mo- 
saic law, and framed in the main by men 
who acknowledge the Mosaic law as of di- 
vine origin. 

The force of circumstances, as God's 
representative in bringing Israel out of 
Egyptian bondage, had centralized the gov- 
ernment in his hand, and made the meek 
Moses an autocrat in power and authority, 
though from the meekness of his disposi- 
tion, he was in fact the overworked ser- 
vant of the people, whose very life was be- 
ing exhausted by the onerous cares of his 
position. At this juncture a civil govern- 
ment was established, which was virtually 
a democracy, but regarded in the light of 
its own claims, it was a Theocracy, i. e. , 
a divine government; for the laws given 
by God, through Moses, permitted of no 
amendments; they must neither add to nor 
take from their code of laws; thus seen, 
Israel's government was different from any 
civil government either before or since. 

Thus it appears that this distinguished 
lawgiver, so far from seeking to perpetuate 
or increase his own power by placing the 
government of the people under the con- 



Is the Christian Religion a Failure. 411 

trol of his direct relatives of the priestly 
tribe, to use their religious authority to 
fetter the rights and liberties of the peo- 
ple, on tbp contrary, introduced to the 
people a form of government calculated to 
cultivate the spirit of liberty. In view of 
this, if the principle of this law had been 
considered in its true sense by men and na- 
tions down through the past ages into the 
nineteenth century, there would be no 
lords over God's heritage, no clergy to 
form thoughts and opinions for others, no 
wicked kings nor emperors to oppress the 
poor, no political schemer to form and 
shape a government through a selfish prin- 
ciple to perpetuate their power and rob the. 
people of their freedom and liberties. In- 
stead of this, if the Mosaic law had been 
lived up to to-day, in this age, equal rights 
would have been the principle for man and 
nations in authority to execute, and see 
that every person, regardless of nationality 
or color, had, without respect of person, 
the exercise of their just rights and free- 
dom and liberty, one of the greatest bless- 
ings for man to enjoy. 

Hence, in view of these facts, how do we 



412 Dager^s Interpretation of the Bible 

find the condition of the nations in the 
present age ? After a careful investigation 
through an impartial principle, we find a 
dark picture of the present nations, whose 
grave is near at hand, formed and shaped 
by the religious creeds and dogmas and 
apostacy of the present age, whose reputa- 
tion to the world is like a beautiful sepul- 
chre, ornamented and painted from the 
best skill, beautiful to behold, attractive in 
its character; but uncover, and dig down 
into its bowels, and you will find dead 
men's bones and all manner of corruption. 

This is the condition of the world at 
present. Is the Christian religion of this 
age a failure? If this dark picture of the 
nations at present is true, and New Testa- 
ment doctrine be true, then it follows 
that the Christian religion of to-day, and 
from the time of its apostacy, is proof of 
itself that it is a failure in converting the 
world to the apostolic religion that Christ 
established as a standard, and final, never 
to add to or take away, beyond any amend- 
ments. 

Is this the condition of the present 
creeds and dogmas of the world ? No, no, 



Is the Christian Religion a Failure. 413 

far from it ; there is an inward war and clash- 
ing going on between the creeds of to-day, 
each claiming a basis from the Bible to sus- 
tain its dogma, while there is but one ba- 
sis to build upon and clear to understand 
by the reason of man, and the smallest tal- 
ent need not err to know the hope within, 
and the true religion of Jesus Christ. 

We will examine the principle of the 
Mosaic law, that was thirty-two centuries 
ahead of its times. Does the most civil- 
ized law of to-day equal it in fairness and 
benevolence ? Let us examine the law 
briefly. We read: 

Ex. xii. 49; Lev. xxiv. 22: 4k Ye shall 
have one manner of law as well for the 
stranger (foreigner) as for one of your own 
country; for I am the Lord your God." 

Lev. xix. 33, 34: 4t And if a stranger so- 
journ with thee in your land, ye shall not 
vex him ; but the stranger that dwelleth with 
you shall be unto you as one born among 
you, and thou shalt love him as thyself, 
for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. 7? 

Ex. xxiii. 4, 5: iC If thou meet thine ene- 
my's ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt 
surely bring it back to him again. If thou 



414 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

see the ass of him that hateth thee lying 
under his burden, and wouldest forbear to 
help him, thou shalt surely help with him. " 
Verse 6: kt Thou shalt not wrest the judg- 
ment of thy poor in his cause. 77 Verse 7: 
14 Keep thee far from a false matter; and 
the innocent and righteous slay thou not; 
for I will not justify the wicked. Verse 8: 
4t And thou shalt take no gift; for the gift 
blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words 
of the righteous. 7 'Moses 7 law provided for 
a restitution every fiftieth year — their ju- 
bilee year. This law, by preventing the 
absolute alienation of property, thereby 
prevented its accumulation in the hands of 
a few. (Lev. xxv. 9, 13, 23, 27, 30.) In 
fact they were taught to consider them- 
selves brethren, and to act accordingly; to 
assist each other without compensation, and 
to take no usury of one another. See Ex. 
xxii. 25; Lev. xxv, 36, 37; Num. xxvL 
52, 56. 

All of the laws are made public. Thus 
preventing designing men from successfully 
tampering with the rights of the people. 
The laws were exposed in such manner that 
any who chose might copy them, and in 



Is the Christian Religion a Failure. 415 

order that the poorest and most unlearned 
might not be ignorant of them. 

And in view of all this, is it a wonder 
that the Christian religion of the nine- 
teenth century is a failure? The Jews as 
a nation in time backslid, and served the 
creature more than the Creator, and sunk 
into idolatry, and by it lost their national- 
ity, A. D. 70, and through disobedience 
are now suffering everlasting punishment, 
by being scattered among the nations of 
the earth, until the end of this Gentile 
world. 

The present Gentile world under the in- 
fluence of the Christian religion, is sunk 
just as deep as the Jews were in idolatry, 
only in a different system and form. Some 
creeds are like the Pharisees of old. They 
command and say, but fail to do, and lay 
heavy burdens upon the people, and strain 
at a gnat and swallow^ a camel. 

Paul, the great apostle of that age, fore- 
saw the apostacy of the church in the lat- 
ter days of this Gentile age. 11 Tim. iii. 1: 
4 1 This know also, that in the last days 
perilous times shall come." Chap. iv. 3: 
4 4 For the time will come when they, the 



416 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

church, will not ensure sound doctrine, 
but after their own lusts shall they heap 
to themselves teachers, having itching ears, 
and they shall turn away their ears from 
the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. " 
Chap. iii. 5: u Having a form of Godli- 
ness, but denying the power thereof; from 
such turn away." 1 Cor. vii. 29-31: "But 
this I say, brethren, the time is short, it 
remain eth, that both they that have wives 
be as though they had none; and that they 
weep as though they wept not ; and that 
they rejoiced as though they rejoiced not; 
and they that buy as though they possessed 
not.' 7 

The Mosaic law is proof of itself, that it 
was divine law from God to man, and made 
a common law, which made no distinction 
between classes, and was no respector of 
persons, was the only protection. This is 
more remarkable, because the treatment of 
servants and strangers, and the aged, was 
the subject of special legislation. For in- 
stance, "Thou shalt not vex nor oppress 
a stranger, nor widow, nor fatherless child; 
thou shalt not oppress an hired servant 
that is poor and needy, whether he be of 



Is the Christian Religion a Failure. 417 

thy brethren or of strangers that are in thy 
land, within thy gates ; at this day thon 
shalt give him his hire ; neither shall the 
8im go down upon it, for he is poor, and 
setteth his heart upon it, " 

How true human nature is, the same in 
all ages of the world. Then in view T of this 
the common Mosaic law of that age, is also 
good for this age, for the same cause pro- 
duces the same effect; and it is Scripture 
that Jesus came to fulfill this common 
Mosaic law. Hence, in view of this, Jesus 
came to destroy the Jewish ceremonial law 
of ordinances, and became a curse for that 
law, by the sacrifice of Himself as a sin of- 
fering, to reconcile Jew and Gentile to- 
gether as one. By this the ceremonial law 
was abolished. This was not the case with 
the Mosaic law, that Jesus came to honor 
and perpetuate as a divine law, never to 
be amended or molested while the earth 
gave birth to man. And in view of these 
facts, if the creeds of the past and present 
age would have advocated and put in force 
and practiced these laws, Christian religion 
would be a success to convert the world to 
truth. Instead of their converting the 



418 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

world to truth and right living, the influ- 
ence of their dogmas over the world gene- 
rates in the hearts of men a principle of 
rascality, which, according to prophecy, 
will soon find it grave. 

In the light of reason all must admit that 
the Mosaic common law bears no evidence 
of being the work of wicked men, but that 
it corresponds exactly with what nature 
teaches to be the character of God. It 
gives evidence of His wisdom, justice and 
love; and further, the evidently pious and 
noble law-giver, Moses, denies that the laws 
were his own, and attributes them to God. 
In view of his general character and his 
commands to the people, not to bear false 
witness, and to avoid hypocracy and lying, 
is it reasonable to suppose that such a man 
bore false witness and palmed off his own 
views and laws for those of God. 

We have authority from Scripture that 
Moses was an honest upright man, and this 
being the fact, God gave the Mosaic law to 
the world through this trusty Moses, a man 
of honor and integrity. 

Is the Christian religion a failure ? It is 
impossible for the creeds of this age to con- 



Is the Christian Religion a Failure, 419 

vert the world by establishing the kingdom 
of God in this (-J entile age or world. We 
will consider this as follows. The statement 
of the word which belongs to one dispensa- 
tion should not be applied to another, as 
things stated of one age or not always true 
of another. For instance, it would not be 
an untruth to say of the present age, that 
the knowledge of (rod fills the whole earth, 
or that there is no need to say to your 
neighbor, 4 'Know the Lord," (Isa. xi. 9; 
Jer. xxxi. 34.) This is not true in this 
age, under the influence of the Christian 
religion, and it cannot be true until the 
Lord having come again, has established 
His kingdom. For thoughout this age 
there have been many seducing deceptions, 
while the church has been wounded by 
bowing down to the mammon of this world. 
And we are told that even in the very end 
of the age, "in last days," evil men and se- 
ducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiv- 
ing and being deceived." (2 Tim. iii. 1, 13.) 
It will be as the result of Messiah's reign 
during that millennial age, that the knowl- 
edge and righteousness shall cover the 
earth, as the waters cover the sea. 



420 Dagers Interpretation of the Bible. 

It is a mistake, and a very common one, 
for the religions creeds of this age to sup- 
pose that they, with their mixed dogmatic 
views, so full of error and confusion, will 
be the means to convert the world, and es- 
tablish the kingdom of God, by their pros- 
elyting the nations of the earth, so as to 
cover the earth with knowledge and right- 
eousness as the waters cover the sea. The 
very nature of this case makes it impossible 
to be a success. Why is this so? Because 
the principle, the spirit incorporated in the 
gospel of the new covenant, speaks with 
authority from the court of God, and says to 
the world, that there is onedogma, one idea, 
one truth, one religion, one thought, one 
line of action, one agreement. One prin- 
ciple will be able to convert the world to 
the religion of Jesus Christ, and establish 
the kingdom of God over the earth; and 
this will be accomplished in the next age, 
(millennial). Nothing but the clean spirit 
of God, with one dogma united into the 
souls of men, will be successful to estab- 
lish the kingdom of God. For instance, 
there is a clear stream of water run- 
ning through a beautiful valley, and 



Is the Christian Religion a Failure. 421 

then along the way, there are Bide streams 
of water, muddy and filthy, pouring their 
contents into the clear stream. What is the 
effect? Will it remain clear? Will it not 
corrupt the clear stream? The reason of 
man, the voice of God condemn it as an 
element of corruption. 

In view of this, this is the condition of 
the Christian religion advocated by the 
different creeds of the present Gentile age. 
Over eighteen hundred years past, Jesus 
Christ, our elder brother, started the beau- 
tiful, clear stream of the Gospel, and be- 
fore the last apostle, John, gave his body 
to the grave, side streams of muddy and 
filthy water began to run into the gospel 
stream, the church; and from that time to 
the present age, the church has been 
muddy and filthy with the mammon of this 
world; and then, in view of all this, some 
creeds of this world have the audacity of 
a thief to hurl to man that they are the 
salt of the earth, and the world will be 
converted by them to God, and his king- 
dom established. What anapostacy! — an- 
cient Pharisaism is a fool compared with 
modern Pharisaism. Just as long as the 



422 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

kingdoms of this world are supported and 
enriched through oppression, injustice and 
deceit to as great an extent as the increas- 
ing intelligence of the people will permit, 
Satan, the devil, representing a figure, 
meaning evil and wickedness through op- 
pression, injustice and deceit from man and 
nation, powerful in its nature, and called 
the prince of this world, the world will 
remain in darkness, but the time will soon 
come when this great gigantic power, the 
wickedness of man, allegorically called the 
dragon, Satan, devil, will be destroyed, 
and the kingdoms of this world will be- 
come the kingdoms of God in the next age. 
What a dark picture for man to behold in 
the nineteenth century. Has the salt of 
the earth lost its savor ? Is the present 
Christian religion a failure ? If the de- 
portments of the creeds and nations of the 
earth are true, then it is true that it is a 
failure. 

Consider the picture portrayed by Je- 
sus Christ in one of his parables (Luke 
xviii.) setting forth the condition of the 
present gospel dispensation in its latter 
days, illustrated through a wicked judge 



Is the Christian Religion a Failure, 423 

and a widow, as a figure. The parable 
reads thus: 4i There was in a city a judge 
which feared not God neither regarded 
man; and there was a widow in that city, 
and she came unto him, saying, Avenge 
me of mine adversary, 7 ' meaning help me 
out of my trouble from my enemies, mine 
adversary; 4i and he would not a while, 
but afterward he said within himself, 
Though I fear not God nor regard man, 
yet because this widow troubleth me, I 
will avenge her, lest by her continual com- 
ing she weary me. 71 

This is the precise condition of the pres- 
ent age of this dispensation, under the 
preaching of the Christian religion. To- 
day the high and lofty, the man of means, 
the oppressor of the poor, take their ease 
like the judge, and do not want to be dis- 
turbed from their condition to help the 
widow and the poor, only when it benefits 
their own comfort, that they help to get 
rid of them. 

" And the Lord said, Hear what the un- 
just judge saith. And shall not Grod 
avenge his own elect, which cry day and 
night unto him, though he bear long with 



424 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

them ? I tell you that he will avenge them 
speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of 
man eometh, shall he find faith on the 
earth ?" 

This is a dark picture portrayed by the 
Son of God, as to the spiritual condition 
of the Christian religion and the creeds in 
the latter days of this gospel dispensation. 
When Jesus comes at the end of this gos- 
pel age, he says, Shall I find faith on the 
earth among the religious creeds ? Faith 
here means strict obedience to the law of 
God. Do we find it ? What is the matter ? 
Scripture says that the church is at the 
foot of the hill, and cannot get to the top. 
Their coat is off, and they can't get it on; 
they have tampered too long by carrying 
the world in one hand and God in the 
other. 

Now comes the destruction and wiping 
out of the gospel dispensation, and the an- 
nihilation of the Christian religion as ad- 
vocated by the creeds, full of error and 
confusion. It should be remembered that 
this earth is the basis of all these c 'worlds" 
and dispensations; and though ages pass 
and dispensations change, still the earth 



Is the Christian Religion a Failure, 425 

continues — " The earth abideth forever." 
(Eccles. i. 4.) Carrying out the same fig- 
ure, Peter calls each of these periods sep- 
arate heavens and earth. Here the word 
heavens symbolizes the higher or spiritual 
controlling powers, and earth symbolizes 
human governments and social arrange- 
ments. Thus, the first heavens and earth, 
or the order and arrangement of things 
then existing, having served their purpose, 
ended at the flood, but the physical heav- 
ens (sky and atmosphere) and the physical 
earth did not pass away; they remained, 
so likewise the present world (heavens and 
earth) will pass away with a great noise, 
fire and melting, confusion, trouble and dis- 
solution; the strong man (Satan), ttat is, 
the corrupt and controlling powers in man, 
being bound, will struggle to retain his 
power, the present order or arrangement 
of government and society, the apostate re- 
ligion of creeds, the enemies of the pure 
religion of Jesus Christ, will pass away; 
not that of the physical sky and earth, the 
present heavens or powers of spiritual con- 
trol, must give place to the tc new heav- 
ens," meaning Christ's spiritual control 

26 



426 Dager's Interpretation of the Bible. 

in the next age or dispensation — the pres- 
ent earth a figure to illustrate human soci- 
ety as now organized under Satan's con- 
trol, meaning under the control of the 
power and corruption of man. This power 
and wickedness of man must (symbolically) 
melt and be dissolved. In the beginning 
of the millenium the day of the Lord, it 
will be succeeded by k ' a new earth, -' mean- 
ing society reorganized, and the kingdoms 
of this earth become the kingdom of Christ, 
in the next dispensation, called the millen- 
nial. In 2 Peter iii. can be found this alle- 
gory of the above interpretation and appli- 
cation. 






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